Diabetes Health Talk

According to a publication distributed by the National Diabetes Education Program, here are some eye-opening statistics:

* American Indians and Alaska Natives on average are 2.2 times more likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites.
* About 15.1 percent of American Indians and Alaska Natives aged twenty years and older and receiving care from the Indian Health Service (IHS) have diabetes.
* Diabetes is least common among Alaska Nationce (8.1 percent) and most common among American Indians in the southern U.S. and southern Arizona (26.7 percent and 27.6 percent respectively).

I’m not quite sure what to make of the stats - but my workaday world is surrounded by stats, so they stuck out at me while I was browsing the ndep site. I also live in Alaska, so those particular stats caught my eye.

I guess I am wondering, too, why these culture groups were picked out - and it may be that they are just one among many and I just stumbled upon this particular flyer. (again the link to Alaska)

The information contained in the flyer is generic - the methods of fighting the disease are the same as any other people group. (lose weight, eat right, exercise, etc.)

It’s possible that with any other series of publications - line them all up in an office or on a display table and the person who fits that particular group (women, natives, etc.) will gravitate toward the publication that fits them. So, I see the sense in it.

But those stats just disturb me. I guess I am wondering WHY Alaska natives have this incidence of diabetes. I’m also wondering whether the Alaska natives represented in this group of stats live in the bush, in barren villages, or if they are city dwellers. Do they have medical resources nearby or do they have to wait for a traveling medical professional to come to their village? Does the Indian Health Service adequately provide information in the native language(s) and dialects?

It all boils down to education, doesn’t it?

We just need to keep teaching ourselves - and our kids - and our grandkids - and those around us who we love.

We need to educate ourselves.

That’s why sites such as the National Diabetes Education Program can be such a wealth of information and help to us all.