1. 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 for complete citation

2. 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?

3. 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

4. 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

5. How does sugar work in your body?
Stomach
Glucose
Step 1:
The food you eat turns into
sugar in your stomach.
Step 2:
Your blood carries the sugar
to your body cells.

6. 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.

7. 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

8. What are the symptoms? Always tired Frequent urination Always thirsty
Always hungry
Blurred vision
Tingling hands or feet
Wounds that don’t heal
Sudden weight loss

9. Diabetes can damage…
Your heart
Your eyes
High blood sugar levels over time can affect blood flow
This can cause heart attacks, strokes and high blood pressure
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

10. Diabetes can damage… Blood vessels within the kidney are affected
Your kidneys
Your nervous system
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

11. Who is at risk for type 2 diabetes?
People who:
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

12. How do I know if I have diabetes?
By doing a fasting blood test
It can only be diagnosed by a doctor

13. 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

14. You can prevent diabetes!
Eating less fat Eating more vegetables & fruits
Eating more fiber

15. 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

16. 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

17. 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

18. For more information about diabetes…
American Diabetes Association
1-800-DIABETES ( )
Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM - 8 PM (Eastern Standard Time)

19. Thank
you!