African American Community and Diabetes Town Hall Meeting at Spelman College

On March 15, 2011, Spelman College and Novo Nordisk hosted a Diabetes Town Hall meeting about its impact on the African American Community. According to the American Diabetes Association, 14.7 percent of all African-Americans age 20 years or older have diabetes. Guest speakers included:

• Kendall Simmons, former NFL guard
• A.J. Johnson, actress, fitness expert, founder, The AJ Zone
• Doxie Jordan, associate vice president, Diabetes Sales Southeast, Novo Nordisk
• Dr. Kathi Earles, MD, medical scientific director, Novo Nordisk
• Donna DeCaille, nutritionist, executive consultant, EnVision Nutrition Inc.
• Gail Richardson, diabetic nurse educator
• Dr. Reginald Fowler, Board Certified Internal Medicine

The American Diabetes Association publication, "What Puts Kids at Risk for Type 2 Diabetes," gives helpful tips and reminders for parents: 

Kids with type 2 diabetes often: 

• Are overweight 
• Are not physically active enough
• Have a mom, dad or other close relative who has type 2 diabetes
• Are African American, Latino American, American Indian, Asian American or Pacific Islander

Common Symptoms of type 2 diabetes:

• Very thirsty
• Fell Tired
• Go to the bathroom a lot
• Have blurry vision
• Losing weight without knowing why
• Have dark skin under arms or neck

However, sometimes there are no symptoms of diabetes and people find out when they go to the doctor for their annual check-up. The advice from the panelists and American Diabetes Association for people to lower their chances of getting diabetes include:

• Eat Healthy Foods
• Be Active Every Day
• Stay at a Healthy Diet 

There are more than 26 million Americans living with diabetes. Interested in helping spread the message about diabetes?

Attend and sign-up for the 2011 Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes 5K: 

Saturday, September 24, 2011in Downtown Atlanta

Saturday, October 8, 2011 in Downtown Alpharetta

Contact Rhonda King at 404-320-7100 ext. 3081. Or email rking@diabetes.org.