The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) will host a live ‘tele-town hall” on Tuesday, Nov. 14, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. to discuss diabetes prevention, management and support available for Hispanic/Latino communities across North Carolina, as well as the discuss the importance of staying up to date with regular health visits and vaccinations.
The NCDHHS on-line town hall method of distributing information on ways to keep North Carolina residents safe from various diseases and other threats became commonplace during the pandemic, and now, post-pandemic, state health officials continue to consider it a valuable tool for dispensing information to the public.
At this event, the panel will include:
- Yazmin Garcia Rico, the director of “Latinx and Hispanic Policy and Strategy” for NCDHHS,
- Dr. Leonor Corsino,, an associate professor of medicine at Duke Health.
- Rosario Villarreal, a community health coordinator with the YMCA of Western North Carolina.
The event is taking place during National Diabetes Awareness Month.
According to stats from the state, “One in three adults in North Carolina are prediabetic and one in eight are diagnosed with diabetes annually.”
Those rates of diabetes are often higher for Hispanic and Latino people – who are much more likely to have type 2 diabetes than other groups.
State officials note that free Information and resources are available to help reduce the risk of prediabetes and diabetes, manage and treat a diagnosis, and support loved ones living with diabetes.
Panelists at the town hall – which is also being billed as a “Cafecito” – will discuss the following:
- Diabetes prevention, support and management
- Importance of regular health checkups
- Guidance on staying healthy this holiday season
- Fall COVID-19, flu and RSV vaccinations
Health officials warn that “People with diabetes are more likely to become severely ill and experience complications from respiratory viruses; so, they argue, it’s “important for everyone to stay up to date on COVID-19, influenza and RSV vaccines to support their own health and help protect vulnerable loved ones as winter months approach.”
The event will stream live from the NCDHHS Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts, where viewers can submit questions. The event also includes a tele-town hall, which invites people by phone to listen in and submit questions.
People can also dial in by calling 855-756-7520 Ext. 95268#.
If you want to overload your pancreas by bulking up with fast carbs, diabetes is what you get. Diabetes is not unique to any race, so everyone should already know that being obese is the prime driver of type 2 diabetes. It’s called common sense, if anyone has it.
Cut back, or cut out; white flour, processed sugar, potatoes & rice. Think of fat-fried french fries smothered is sugar-loaded ketchup, chips, pizza, soda, doughnuts…..