Published: October 08, 2008 11:18 pm      

Lace up your sneakers for Walk for Diabetes

Why walk for diabetes?

Because currently 346,500 Mississippians have diabetes, which costs the state more than $2 billion annually. Additionally, nearly one in three children will develop Type 2 diabetes if current trends continue.

"Diabetes affects people from various backgrounds and age groups," said Kim Breaux, public relations coordinator for the Diabetes Foundation of Mississippi.

Thus, people from all walks of life and various ages are expected to participate in Mississippi's Walking for Diabetes on Oct. 19 at Bonita Lakes Park.

"All services we provide are for people of all ages, so it is the same as far as turnout for the Walk for Diabetes," Breaux said. "At previous walks, we've had toddlers in strollers, kids on skates and elderly people with their walkers participating."

The event is held in various locations throughout the state, including Jackson, Vicksburg, Hatiesburg and Meridian. More than 3,000 people laced up their sneakers last year in Mississippi's Walk for Diabetes. Now in its 10th year, the walk pays tribute to all Mississippians – children and seniors alike – for their bravery in facing a disease they share with more than 11 percent of the state’s population: diabetes.

“Mississippi’s Walk for Diabetes is an awesome way to honor a loved one, recognize the importance of diabetes education and awareness and raise the critical funds for diabetes care and services for Mississippians at the same time,” said Regional Coordinator Erin Glenn-Everett, who is organizing Meridian’s Walk for Diabetes.

“Until there is a cure for this horrible disease, there is the Diabetes Foundation of Mississippi that works tirelessly to provide patient assistance for families with no insurance, send children with diabetes to Camp Kandu and provide educational programs for schools, daycares, healthcare providers and diabetes patients,” Everett said.

Mississippi currently tops the nation’s charts for the highest number of people with diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Mississippi State Department of Health. Likewise, studies have cited that in addition to the 346,500 Mississippians currently living with diabetes, an additional estimated 850,000 are at increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes because of risk factors such as obesity, age and sedentary lifestyle.

Studies have shown that if current trends continue, one in three Mississippi children will develop Type 2 diabetes in his or her lifetime, said Diabetes Foundation Associate Director Irena McClain, MPH. Not surprisingly, then, are the factors leading to that prognosis – that 65 percent of the state is either obese or overweight and, therefore, at increased risk for developing Type 2 diabetes.

“For these reasons, it is more important than ever that we take diabetes by the reins and start managing our health proactively,” McClain said. “We encourage everyone to join the Diabetes Foundation on the road to a cure at Mississippi’s Walk for Diabetes, where we raise the funds needed to tackle the diabetes epidemic.”

Several of the programs benefiting directly from the Walk for Diabetes include health fairs and screenings conducted around the state; educational opportunities for students, healthcare providers, patients and school teachers; and the ‘We Care 2’ program, which enables a DFM staff member to visit a newly diagnosed child and his or her family in the hospital and offer materials and advice for making a healthy transition. These programs and a myriad of others are supported directly through the Walk for Diabetes.





WALK DETAILS



What: Mississippi’s Walk for Diabetes

When: Oct. 19. Registration, 1 p.m.; walk starts at 2 p.m.

Where: Bonita Lakes Park

Other information: Register by calling (601) 957-7878 or by visiting www.msdiabetes.org