GRDHD enrolling for diabetes education series
Apr. 10—The Green River District Health Department is currently enrolling for its upcoming “Healthy Living with Diabetes” education and support series through Kentucky Department for Public Health.
The series will be offered virtually in four two-hour sessions on May 18, 20, 25 and 27.
Healthy Living with Diabetes, according to Merritt Bates-Thomas, GRDHD diabetes population health specialist, is a self-management education and support class.
“The information provided relates to guiding people to live with diabetes and manage it successfully, looking at developing healthy eating, an activity plan, getting tips on taking their medication and then looking, also, at reducing risks for short and long-term complications,” she said.
Unmanaged diabetes can lead to serious health complications, according to Bates-Thomas, that include blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, stroke, or loss of toes, feet or legs.
Additionally, there are different types and degrees of the disease, she said.
“Many people think of diabetes as kind of one, all-encompassing chronic disease, when in reality, it has many different faces,” she said.
Type 1 diabetes is having low blood sugar and is not preventable, according to Bates-Thomas, while Type 2 is having high blood sugar and can be prevented or delayed if managed properly.
Additionally, she said, individuals can develop prediabetes, which is when a person has higher than normal blood sugar levels, but not high enough yet to be diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes.
One in eight individuals with prediabetes do not know they have prediabetes, she said. However, prediabetes can be managed to prevent it from progressing into Type 2 diabetes.
“It’s a point at which people can take action, making lifestyle changes such as … their eating habits, becoming more physically active, looking at a variety of things that they can improve,” she said. “Just making those changes, losing a small amount of weight, can cut your risk for then developing Type 2 diabetes in half.”
Bates-Thomas said the Healthy Living with Diabetes series will help teach individuals more about the many facets of living with diabetes, in addition to how to manage it.
Anyone interested in learning more about the series or registering can contact Bates-Thomas at 270-852-5561 or by email at [email protected].
Christie Netherton, [email protected], 270-691-7360
