SCHERTZ – The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service in Guadalupe County, the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas and the Institute for Public Health and Education Research are offering a free educational series in Schertz to help people with Type 2 diabetes.
A free five-class ‘Do Well, Be Well with Diabetes’ series will be held on consecutive Mondays from March 3 to March 31 at the Schertz United Methodist Church. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service photo)
The program, called Do Well, Be Well with Diabetes, will present a series of five classes to be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on consecutive Mondays — March 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31 — at the Schertz United Methodist Church, 3460 Roy Richard Drive.
The five-week series will address nine different topics related to the skills and information needed to understand and manage diabetes, reduce risks for complications, and to attain their highest possible level of wellness, program coordinators said.
“If you know you have diabetes and you want to learn more about how to make sure you do the best you can by keeping your blood glucose in the range recommended by the American Diabetes Association, you should attend,” said Dr. Charla Bading, AgriLife Extension agent for family and consumer sciences in Guadalupe County. “These classes are being taught by a team of volunteers and other health professionals to provide attendees with the latest information on how to better manage Type 2 diabetes.”
Bading said the program’s aim is to “help people control their diabetes rather than letting the disease control them.”
Classes will include: What Is Diabetes?, Nutrition – First Step to Diabetes Management, Diabetes Diet – No Longer Sole Option, Managing Your Blood Glucose, Nutritional Labels, Diabetes and Exercise, For Good Measure at Home and Eating Out, Medications, and Preventing and Managing Complications.
“The classes are not meant to substitute for care by a physician – everyone with diabetes should see a doctor regularly,” Bading said. “However, diabetes is a disease that mostly requires daily self-management. Although doctors, other health professionals and trained educators can advise and teach them, the people with diabetes are really the ones who control and manage it.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the number of people with diabetes has increased by 3 million in three years to a new high of 24 million. Almost 8 percent of the U.S. population has diabetes, with almost a quarter of people over 65 having diabetes.
“In addition, 57 million people have pre-diabetes, which means they are at very high risk for developing diabetes,”Bading said. “And your risk is higher if you are over 45 and are over your recommended weight. You are also at higher risk if you are physically inactive, have close relatives with diabetes or are a member of a high risk ethnic populations such as African American, Hispanic, Native American or Asian American.
She said other risk factors for diabetes include having delivered a baby weighing over 9 pounds, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and/or triglycerides, polycystic ovary syndrome or a history of vascular disease.
“We hope people in the area will take advantage of this opportunity to come learn how to not only make their life with diabetes easier, but also how to reduce their chances for complications,” Bading said. “Attendees will get the maximum benefit by coming to all five classes.”
Class size will be limited, so attendees should contact the AgriLife Extension office in Guadalupe County at 830-303-3889 or guadalupe-tx@tamu.edu to reserve their spot.
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