Diabetes can be
Prevented!
Adriana Delgadillo, MPH (c)
Health Educator
University of California, San Francisco
Copyright © 2009 The Regents of the University of California, all rights reserved
See http://iha.ucsf.edu:16080/LiveWellBeWell/ for complete citation
Today we are going to talk about:
 What
is diabetes?
 How does blood sugar work?
 What is type 2 diabetes?
 What are the symptoms?
 How diabetes affects the body?
 Who is at risk of getting diabetes?
 What is pre-diabetes?
 How can I prevent diabetes?
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How many people have diabetes?


20.8 million people in the U.S. have diabetes
1/3 or the people who have diabetes don’t know it
= 1 million people
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What is diabetes?

Diabetes means that your blood sugar (glucose)
is too high

Your blood always has some sugar in it because
the body needs sugar for energy

But too much sugar in the blood can cause
damage to your health

Diabetes can be controlled but not cured
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How does sugar work in your body?
Step 1:
The food you eat turns into
sugar in your stomach.
Step 2:
Your blood carries the sugar
to your body cells.
Stomach
Glucose
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Step 3:

The pancreas is in charge of releasing insulin.

Insulin helps sugar enter
body cells.

If your body doesn’t make enough insulin or the
insulin doesn’t work the way it should, the sugar
can’t go into the cells making your blood sugar
go up.
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Type 2 Diabetes

The pancreas doesn’t make enough insulin

The insulin doesn’t work the way it should

90% of diabetes cases are type 2
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What are the symptoms?

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




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Always tired
Frequent urination
Always thirsty
Always hungry
Blurred vision
Tingling hands or feet
Wounds that don’t heal
Sudden weight loss
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Diabetes can damage…


High blood sugar levels over time
can affect blood flow
This can cause heart attacks,
strokes and high blood pressure
Your heart


Your eyes
High blood sugar levels can
damage the small blood vessels
in the back of the eye
This can cause blurred vision and
loss of vision
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Diabetes can damage…

Blood vessels within the
kidney are affected

Over time, high blood sugar
can damage nerves in the
body
Loss of sensation, pain and
burning sensation in feet
Your kidneys

Your nervous
system
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Who is at risk for type 2 diabetes?
People who:





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Are older than 45
Have a family member with diabetes
Are Latino, African-American, Native-American o
Asian-American
Had diabetes during pregnancy
Are overweight
Have high cholesterol
Have high blood pressure
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How do I know if I have diabetes?

By doing a fasting
blood test

It can only be
diagnosed by a
doctor
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What is pre-diabetes?

Blood glucose levels are
higher than normal but not
high enough to be diabetes

Occurs before people develop
type 2 diabetes

At this stage, you can delay
or prevent diabetes
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You can prevent diabetes!
Eating less fat
Eating more vegetables & fruits
Eating more fiber
14
You can prevent diabetes!

Regular physical activity
 Helps your body to use insulin better
 Helps maintain weight loss

Walking 30 minutes,
5 days a week, has been
shown to reduce the risk
of getting diabetes
15
Take action today…

If you haven’t eaten in 8 hrs,
take a finger prick test

This will tell you if you are at risk
of getting diabetes

If you are at risk, you may be able to join the
Live Well, Be Well project
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To conclude…

Diabetes is a serious disease that can cause
serious health problems

It can be prevented

Healthy eating and exercise
can make the difference

Get tested today. Do it for you and your loved
ones
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For more information about
diabetes…
American Diabetes Association
1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383)
Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM - 8 PM (Eastern Standard Time)
www.diabetes.org
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Thank
you!
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