ORIGINALLY WRITTEN CYNTHIA MARTENS
During the month of November and the first two weeks of December, Greenhaw Pharmacy and the Wellness Center worked in cooperation with 34 Hillsboro business to test employees for pre-diabetes.
“We want to find diabetes before it finds you,” said Jeanne Rziha, Wellness Center coordinator.
“Diabetes is a condition where the pancreas is not pumping out enough insulin or the body is resistant to the insulin it is producing.
“Both conditions lead to high blood sugars.”
In recognition of National Diabetes Month, the pre-diabetes test was offered at $1 per person, Rziha. People were tested at their business, at the Health Post and Greenhaw Pharmacy.
Out of 425 people tested, 32 were found to have elevated blood-glucose levels.
The test was conducted similarly to those done at the doctor’s office but with less expense and less accuracy than the fasting blood test, Rziha said.
Prior to the test, participants were asked to consume a large meal or eat a large amount of carbohydrates. Two hours later, their blood sugar was tested.
Two hours after eating, blood sugar levels should be between 80 and 140, Rziha said.
If the blood sugar is more than 150, the body is getting damage to eyes, heart, kidneys, blood vessels and nerves, she added.
Everyone tested was given a slip of paper with the test results and recommendations. Anyone with elevated blood sugar was encouraged to see a physician.
Rziha said some of the individuals checked with high blood sugars went to out-of-town doctors who conducted a fasting blood-sugar test.
The test came back below 126, so they were told they were OK, Rziha said.
In pre-diabetes, the blood sugar is high after meals and causes damage to the body, even if the fasting blood sugar is normal, Rziha said.
“We encourage these people to adopt lifestyle changes so their next visit to the doctor does not confirm diabetes,” she said. “If the diet changes and exercise changes occur, and the blood sugar is brought down, there is evidence that many of these individuals will not get diabetes.”
The Wellness Center at the Health Post will continue to offer the $1 tests until the end of January. The center also is offering a pre-diabetes class in January and a diabetic class in February.
For more information, call 947-3481 or 947-3784.
