Partly cloudy skies. High 48F. Winds light and variable..
A clear sky. Low 23F. Winds light and variable.
Updated: December 27, 2022 @ 5:35 am
Partly cloudy skies. High 48F. Winds light and variable..
A clear sky. Low 23F. Winds light and variable.
Updated: December 27, 2022 @ 5:35 am
(Photo Credit: Nataliya Vaitkevich/pexels)
(Photo Credit: Nataliya Vaitkevich/pexels)
In 2021, South Carolina had the 8th highest percentage of the adult population with diabetes in the United States. That’s more than 561,000 adults. Even more alarming, more than 1 in 3 adults in the U.S. are estimated to have prediabetes.
Without treatment, prediabetes is likely to develop into Type 2 diabetes, and 90% of South Carolinians who have prediabetes don’t know they have it.
With the tendency to overindulge in less than healthy food during the holiday season, December is a particularly good time to find out whether you might have prediabetes, and resources are available.
“Prediabetes is kind of silent, like high blood pressure,” said Dara Brown, senior community health coordinator at the Diabetes Intervention Program (DIP) for Families at the Brookland-Lakeview Empowerment Center in West Columbia. “That’s why it’s important to make sure you’re getting a physical every year and that your doctor’s actually checking your blood sugar and A1C. Usually, symptoms don’t manifest until it’s too late, and it turns into actual diabetes.”
The easiest way to find out is through the inittogethersc.org website, provided by the Diabetes Action Council of South Carolina. The site offers a quick, simple and free test to evaluate your level of risk, as well as advice for reducing that risk.
“If you change your eating habits and you exercise, you can turn it around in most cases and just live a better quality of life,” said Sylvia Flint, project coordinator for the Brookland-Lakeview DIP.
The Brookland-Lakeview DIP offers free classes open to residents of Lexington and Richland Counties, allowing people to speak with diabetes experts and learn how to eat healthy, get active and lower stress in just seven months.
The next class program begins in January, and was around half full as of December 22. Classes are scheduled regularly, and Spanish-language programs will be offered starting in March. The classes are designed for those who have or are at risk for prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes but can have benefits even beyond those conditions.
“Type 2 diabetes tends to be more associated with lifestyle, and the same lifestyle that leads to Type 2 tends to lead to hypertension and heart disease. So you can adjust and change things so that you live longer and healthier and on less medication,” Brown explained.
In addition to the more important results of improving and saving lives, preventing diabetes can save a great deal of money. In 2021, the total amount of emergency department charges related to diabetes was over $120 million in South Carolina alone. Much of that could be prevented by a better diet and more exercise.
Brookland-Lakeview DIP, the Diabetes Action Council of South Carolina, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), and others work together not only during December but also throughout the year to raise awareness and cut down on the alarming numbers of diabetes and prediabetes cases in the Palmetto State.
“DHEC is one of our partners, and so they have supported us,” Flint said. “The Diabetes Intervention Program for families is funded by the Office of Minority Health, so it’s a federal grant. We are really excited that they have come alongside us and help us wherever we need help.”
To register for the Brookland-Lakeview Diabetes Intervention Program for Families, visit brooklandlakeview.org/diabetes-intervention-program. For the free test to assess your risk for prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes and to find a variety of other helpful resources, visit inittogethersc.org.
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