Diabetes fair set
Monongahela Valley Hospital’s Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology will be offering its annual Diabetes Awareness Day on Saturday, April 14, beginning at 8 a.m. in the hospital’s Anthony M. Lombardi Education Conference Center. The event, free and open to the public, will feature diabetes health screenings for complication risk. Karen Pritts, director of the hospital’s Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology, said the fair is designed to give participants information on the risks for diabetes complications and ways to manage the disease.
“Diabetes is a disease in which the body fails to produce or properly use insulin, a hormone that is responsible for transporting sugar (glucose) into the body’s cells for energy,” she said. “Without insulin to transport glucose, sugars build up in the blood and can cause a variety of problems like heart disease, kidney disease, blindness and nerve damage to the extremities.”
Pritts added that the American Diabetes Association (ADA) estimates that more than 20.8 million children and adults in the United States or seven percent of the population have been diagnosed with diabetes.
“Unfortunately, 6.2 million Americans are unaware they have the disease.”
“Diagnosing diabetes early and working to maintain good blood glucose control is essential for positive health outcomes,” she said. “Research has shown that complication risks can be decreased and improved with diabetes control. The goal of the program on April 14 is to heighten that awareness in our community.”
Achieving type 2 diabetes control includes several key factors beginning with exercise, weight reduction if needed, taking medications as ordered, monitoring blood sugars and education.
The Diabetes Awareness Day will focus on risk factors for complications such as: high blood pressure, obesity, uncontrolled blood sugars, neuropathy and elevated lipids.
Although the event is free, advance registration is requested Monday through Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. at 724-258-1148.