REDUCING YOUR RISK OF DIABETES CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE
Kimberly Ellis, 56, participated in the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program in 2015—enabling her to reverse her risk of diabetes.
“I lost almost 20 pounds and learned valuable, helpful information regarding being healthy,” she said. “I learned a lot about diabetes that I did not know before and I will fight to prevent it.”
Not only does having prediabetes put an individual at increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, it also increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.
That’s why your Y is here to help people reduce their risk of diabetes through a yearlong lifestyle change class that helps individuals lose weight and develop healthy physical and dietary habits.
Right now, there are 4 diabetes prevention classes going on at the Y. Current participants have collectively lost 7.7 to 9.1 percent of their starting weight so far—a 698-pound weight loss!
Research shows that programs like the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program reduce the number of new cases of Type 2 diabetes by 71 percent in people over the age of 60. This is important because more than 50 percent of older adults have prediabetes and 90 percent of them aren’t aware of it.
New cases of diagnosed diabetes in the U.S. decreased by 35 percent since peaking in 2009, according to researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New cases declined from 1.7 million new cases per year in 2008 to 1.3 million new cases in 2017.
It’s not just a coincidence that diabetes rates are declining as the number of prevention programs are increasing. The YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program is delivered by Ys in 40 states and at more than 1,100 locations. To date, the program has served more than 64,000 participants.
Success in this area means we are more determined to fight diabetes than ever with the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program.
