Sixty-three thousand Rhode Islanders have been diagnosed with diabetes. Another 31,500 people in the state have diabetes but have not been diagnosed with the disease. People with diabetes have an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.

To help people with diabetes manage their disease, VNS of Newport and Bristol Counties holds outpatient diabetes education classes throughout the year and at different locations. VNS is nationally certified by the American Diabetic Association and the RI Department of Health as an outpatient teaching site. Our program is affiliated with the Hallet Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology at Rhode Island Hospital.

A four week course will start in March 2012 at our Portsmouth office

Five two-hour sessions explain aspects of diabetes self-management including medications, nutrition, menu planning, monitoring of blood glucose (“sugar”), stress reduction, cholesterol reduction, and exercise.

Classes are taught by certified diabetes outpatient educators including a registered nurse, dietitian, and pharmacist.

If you are interested in more information about our outpatient diabetes education classes, call to 401 682-2100.

Two Diabetes Support Groups are open to all those living with diabetes. The groups are provided free of charge by Visiting Nurse Services of Newport and Bristol Counties. One group is held on the first Tuesday of every month, 5:30 to 6:30 pm, at Newport Hospital, Gudoian Conference Room, 11 Friendship St., Newport. The second group is held on the second Thursday of every month, 1 to 2 pm, at the Edward King Center, 35 King St., Newport. Each meeting is facilitated by a certified diabetes educator. No registration or doctor's referral is required. If you are interested in more information about our diabetes support groups or our outpatient diabetes education classes, please call to 401 682-2100.
 

SIGNS & SYMPTOMS OF DIABETES Always Tired Crave liquids (more than 10 glasses/day) Frequent Urination (especially during the night) Always hungry (especially after eating) Unexplained weight loss Blurred Vision Numbness and tingling of feet Wounds that won't heal Infections (vaginal itching in females) Sexual dysfunction (difficulty with erection)

YOU ARE AT RISK, IF: A family member has diabetes You are overweight (waist measurement is more than 1/2 your height) You are over 40 years old You are African American, Asian, Latino or Native American. You are a woman who gave birth to a baby weighing over 9lbs. You are a woman who has had diabetes during pregnancy.

FACTS ABOUT DIABETES

When your body doesn't make enough insulin, or when the insulin you do make doesn't work as well as it should to keep the insulin/glucose balance, you have diabetes.

When you have diabetes, you have to do the work your body used to do to keep the insulin/glucose balance. To do this, you have to know how well the insulin and glucose in your body are matched. You can find this out by testing the amount of glucose in your blood.

There are two types of diabetes:

Gestational diabetes is another type of diabetes that starts in some women when they are pregnant. It usually goes away after the baby is born, but more than half of women will have permanent diabetes later in life. If you keep your weight down and exercise regularly the chance of getting diabetes later is much less.

Diabetes can be caused by other illnesses and certain kinds of medication can affect glucose production. Be sure to tell your doctor about all the medications you take.

With information from Novo Nordisk's "Keeping Well with Diabetes".