Diabetes Alert Day
by Kristi Potts on 04/07/16
Diabetes Alert Day
Montgomery County Family YMCA Press Release (Red Oak, Iowa)
March 18th, 2016
Tuesday, March 22, is American Diabetes Association Alert Day® and as the leading community-based provider committed to improving the nation’s health, Montgomery County Family YMCA is encouraging people in Montgomery County to learn the risks of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes and steps they can take to prevent the disease.
- An estimated 86 million people, one in three adults, in the United States have prediabetes, yet just 10 percent of those individuals know they have it.
- Having prediabetes means a person has elevated blood glucose levels that are not high enough for a diabetes diagnosis. People with prediabetes are at risk for not only developing type 2 diabetes, but also heart disease and other conditions.
On American Diabetes Association Alert Day, we encourage all community members to take a diabetes risk assessment by visiting ymca.net/diabetes. If you are at risk for prediabetes, it’s best to meet with your primary care physician to discuss your options.
About Type 2 Diabetes:
- Type 2 diabetes is diagnosed more often in adults, and type 1 diabetes is diagnosed more often in children, but the rates of type 2 diabetes are increasing rapidly for both adults and children.
- Adults with diabetes or prediabetes are at higher risk of developing heart disease and stroke than other groups of people.
- People who are overweight, inactive and over the age of 45 are at risk for the disease.
- If a person is at risk, a diabetes screening conducted by a health care provider can confirm if a person has diabetes or prediabetes. Medicare covers the cost of screenings for beneficiaries.
- Individuals can reduce their risk for developing diabetes. Research has shown that modest weight loss and regular, moderate physical activity can prevent or delay type 2 diabetes among adults at risk.
- Medical expenses for people with diabetes are more than two times higher than for people without diabetes.
- The average medical expenses for a person with diabetes are $13,700 per year.
- In 2012, the total cost of diagnosed diabetes was $245 billion; $176 billion was in direct medical costs and $69 billion in reduced productivity.
African-Americans and Diabetes:
- African-Americans have a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes when compared to non-Hispanic whites.
- According to the CDC, the risk of a diabetes diagnosis is 77 percent higher for African-Americans when compared to non-Hispanic whites.
- 4.9 million African Americans (13.2 percent) ages 20 years or older have diagnosed diabetes.
Hispanic/Latinos and Diabetes:
- Hispanic and Latinos have a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes when compared to non-Hispanic whites.
- According to the CDC, the risk of a diabetes diagnosis is 66 percent higher among Hispanics/Latinos when compared to non-Hispanic whites.
- 12.8 percent of Hispanics/Latinos ages 20 years or older have diagnosed diabetes.
- Among Hispanics/Latinos, diabetes prevalence rates are 8.5 percent for Central and South Americans, 9.3 percent for Cubans, 13.9 percent for Mexican Americans, and 14.8 percent for Puerto Ricans.
For more information on how one can become a member, volunteer, donor, or simply involved with the Montgomery County Family YMCA, please stop in for a visit or tour of the YMCA, call the YMCA at 712-623-2161, or visit the YMCA on Facebook, or the Y’s website at www.mcymca.com.
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