CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

Health department to hold free diabetes prevention classes

The Warren Record - 9/6/2017

The Warren County Health Department will hold free diabetes prevention classes beginning Tuesday, Sept. 12, from 11 a.m.-noon in the health department's conference room.

Hilda Baskerville, health department health educator, said that the classes, which will run for about a year, are geared toward minorities who have been diagnosed with prediabetes. The program is made possible through The Minority Diabetes Prevention Program, a division of the N.C. Division of Public Health'sOffice of Minority Health and Health Disparities.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, African-Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, Pacific Islanders and some Asian-Americans are at higher risk for diabetes.

The CDC states that some 84 million adults in the United States have prediabetes, meaning that their blood sugar is higher than normal, but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Weight, age, heredity and inactivity are among the risk factors for prediabetes.

The CDC emphasizes that losing weight and increasing exercise can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and that will be the focus of the local classes.

Baskerville said that the diabetes prevention sessions will focus on the small lifestyle changes people can make to improve their overall health.

She said that classes will meet once a week for the first 16 weeks. The sessions will then move to twice a month for six months and, finally, to once a month for six months.

The health department will monitor progress during the course of the classes. Participants will complete a short questionnaire at the start of the program and will weigh in at the beginning of each class. Collected data will be submitted to the state.

For more information, contact Hilda Baskerville at 252-257-6012 or email hildabaskerville@warrencountync.gov.