Diabetes Project

The Mission of the White Earth Diabetes Project is to support families affected by diabetes and reduce the onset of diabetes in our communities by providing health opportunities, education and interventions.

What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease that affects the way the body uses food. Normally, the body turns food into sugar for energy. Then, the blood carries this sugar to cells throughout the body. There, insulin, a hormone, helps turn sugar from food into energy for the body to work. But when you have diabetes, something goes wrong. The body makes little or no insulin or insulin can’t get blood sugar into the cells. As a result, the body doesn’t get the fuel it needs and blood sugar stays too high.

Over time, high blood sugar can cause:

• Cardiovascular problems - Diabetes can damage your blood vessels. This damage makes it easier for fatty deposits (plaques) to form in the arteries.
• Eye Problems - Diabetic retinopathy causes from 12,000 to 24,000 new cases of blindness each year.
• Feet and Limb Problems - High blood sugar can damage the nerves in your feet. A minor foot injury could become a serious infection.
• Kidney Problems - Diabetes is a leading cause of chronic kidney failure in the United States. Kidneys filter waste from your blood and diabetes can damage this delicate filter system.

Facts:

• More than 107,000, or 14.5% of the population, of Native Americans receiving care from Indian Health Services have diabetes.
• 30% of all Native Americans living here on the White Earth Reservation are diagnosed with diabetes.

Risk Factors and Symptoms
Risk Factors
Diabetes is a silent disease. By the time it is diagnosed, damage to arteries, eyes, nerves and kidneys may have been already occuring for seven to ten years. Every minute at least one person is diagnosed with diabets. Risk factors include:

• Weight - The more fatty tissue you have, the more resistant your cells become to insulin.
• Inactivity - Physical activity helps you control your weight, uses up glucose as energy and makes your cells more sensitive to insulin.
• Family History - The risk of type 2 diabetes increases if a parent or sibling has type 2 diabetes.
• Race - Native Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, African Americans and Asian Americans are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
• Age - The risk of type 2 diabetes increases with age, especially after 45. People tend to excercise less, lose muscle mass and gain weight as they age.
• Smoking

Symptoms:

• Frequent unination
• Excessive thirst
• Extreme hunger
• Unusual weight loss
• Increased fatigue
• Irritability

Services and Fitness Centers
The White Earth Diabetes Project provides opportunities for improved fitness to all ages and levels of ability.

• Fitness centers in White Earth, Naytahwaush, Mahnomen and Rice Lake- see below for more information
• Free personal training in all centers
• Group fitness classes such as kettlebell, thera-band, step aerobics, and zumba
• Blood sugar, A1C, blood pressure and kidney testing
• Sponsorship of multiple area 5k run/walks to fight diabetes
• Nike incentive programs- N-7 shoe
• Nutrition Education
• Diabetes and healthy living bingo education
• Orthotic shoe specialists
• Monthly podiatry clinics with Dr. Ung