“When I first started as a nurse, doctors used to say 200 blood sugar was fine and by the time they had diagnosed diabetes people had really severe complications,” she said. “But now we know more about preventive care and how heart disease and diabetes are related.”
Knowing that preventive care is needed, and few insurance companies cover such resources, Gerlach said Atrium launched a free monthly program, “It’s Not Too Late to Prevent Diabetes.”
Through the one-hour program, people can learn about small steps they can take to prevent diabetes and what are some of the risk factors, said Sheri O’Flynn, Atrium spokeswoman.
Attendees of the first seminar held Thursday, July 15, at the Diabetes Wellness Center, 4218 Grand Ave., learned that one of the key concepts to preventing diabetes is diet and exercise. While Gerlach said it can be intimidating to try to burn 3,500 calories to lose just a pound of fat, simple steps like cutting 500 calories from your diet and burning another 200 through a brisk 30-minute walk each week make it possible to meet that goal.
In addition to the monthly meetings, Atrium officials said patients seeking more one-on-one assistance can call the wellness center to get insurance codes to see if their carrier will cover preventive care.
“We’re hoping we can help some people to keep them from having to pay out of pocket to prevent diabetes,” she said.
The next free program will be held from 3-4 p.m. Aug. 19. For more information or to register for a prevention program class, call (513) 727-5475.
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