Last week I was contacted by someone at my local YMCA because they were given my information from my endo (she’s not an endo, I don’t know her exact title, but she’s who I see at the endo office). As I’ve written about before, my endo office is great with sharing information that I give them about diabetes inititiaves and outreach programs going on, which is why they put me in touch with the Y.
Last Friday I had the chance to meet with Robin from the Y to discuss the Diabetes Prevention Program. If you have not heard of this program, no worries, because I didn’t either until Friday when I stepped into the office. Basically, the program helps those that have a high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and works with them to reduce their risk for developing T2D (or help slow it down) by making improvements to their overall health (eating, exercising, lifestyles, etc.) This program is based off of research done by the NIH that these changes in lifestyle can help reduce the numbers of Type 2 Diabetes diagnosis.
Before anybody tries to jump all over me, I know that diet and exercise is not going to stop everyone from getting Type 2 Diabetes, but we all do know that these changes help prevent those that are at risk.
Who is Considered High Risk?
In order to enroll people into this program, they must be at risk which means that they must complete an at risk assessment by answering a few questions. For example, “are you a woman who has given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds?” or “do you have a parent with diabetes?”
Based off of this assessment, you may be at risk for diabetes which means you can enroll and participate in this program.
A few other qualification standards:
- Must be over 18
- BMI 25 or above
- At risk or have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes
- Fasting Plasma Glucose of 100-125
Goals of the Diabetes Prevention Program
The program is based on a small group, supportive environment concept that is classroom based, but isn’t just a lecture. Participants will learn about healthier eating habits and how to increase their physical activity. The program is 1 year which consists of 16 weekly sessions then monthly sessions thereafter.
The main goals by the end of the program are to reduce body weight by 7% and increase physical activity to 150 minutes per week.
Additional Information
- 102 Y’s Currently Trained to Deliver the program
- 1,805 Lifestyle coaches trained by Y-USA
- 18,459 Participants completed or attended one session
- 826 Total class locations (422 YMCA and 404 Non-YMCA)
- 39 States where the program is offered
- 2,366 Classes start
- 4.9% Average Body Weight loss by program participants
* All stats provided by YMCA Pamphlet
I encourage you all to contact your local YMCA to find out if they are participating in this program and help them spread the word.
My local YMCA is the YMCA of South Palm Beach County. So, if you live in this area and are reading my blog, please reach out to me by commenting or sending me an email. Not just for this cause, but many others that we can work together on.
If you are in this area and would like more information or how to help, please contact Robin Nierman at 1-800-798-4531 or go to www.ymcaspbc.org
This outreach program is important to me and is one of my biggest areas of advocacy because with the right information, people can make better decisions and also know what they are at risk for and know what symptoms to look for. I go back to the night that I was diagnosed and the months leading up to it. I had every single possible symptom for over 2 months, but I had zero diabetes knowledge and ended up in the ER with an 858 blood sugar and almost dying.
A little bit of information would have went a long way.