This fall, the American Medical Association, along with the YMCA of Middle Tennessee, the Tennessee Medical Association and the Tennessee Nurses Association, held a summit for area physicians, nurses and other medical professionals to learn about new resources for preventing type 2 diabetes and introduce a new diabetes prevention program.

“More than one out of every three American adults has pre-diabetes and only about 11 percent are even aware that they are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes,” AMA President Robert M. Wah, MD, said of his organization’s push to raise awareness. “In addition to crippling the health and well-being of our patients and citizens, type 2 diabetes is also one of the key drivers of healthcare costs. The AMA is working with the YMCA, Tennessee Medical Association and Tennessee Nurses Association to improve health outcomes of individuals in Nashville through better prevention, thereby contributing to reduced healthcare costs for this disease.”

The September summit focused on specific goals of diabetes prevention programs, including:

Increasing education and awareness of pre-diabetes by promoting physician practice screening of those at risk; and

Increasing physician and other healthcare provider referrals of people with pre-diabetes to the evidence-based YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program.

Recent reports rank Tennessee as having the sixth highest incidence of diabetes by population in the United States with more than one in 10 adult Tennesseans with diabetes and an estimated 50,000 more struggling with pre-diabetes.

“Changing outcomes often means changing behaviors that have led to Tennessee’s high rates of diabetes, such as obesity, poor diet and lack of regular physical activity. We want to give patients, through their healthcare providers, resources to help address these lifestyle issues and avoid unnecessary medical complications,” said Ted Cornelius, vice president of Health Innovation for the Middle Tennessee Y.

The YMCA initiative is part of the CDC’s National Diabetes Prevention Program, which includes 16 weeks of core education on healthy eating and physical activity from a trained lifestyle coach, as well as peer and goal-setting support. Following the initial sessions, participants meet monthly for up to a year to monitor their progress. The program is based on research funded by the National Institutes of Health, which has shown, among adults with pre-diabetes, a 58 percent reduction in the number of new cases of type 2 diabetes and a 71 percent reduction in new cases among those over age 60.

In his opening remarks, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean thanked the participating organizations and acknowledged the increasing number of Middle Tennesseans affected by diabetes and pre-diabetes. He added physical activity plays a major role in prevention.

“By investing in greenways, bikeways and parks that encourage physical activity, Nashville has made a strong statement that we are committed to being a healthy city,” Dean pointed out. The mayor, who has spearheaded more than $130 million in public infrastructure to support active lifestyles, is hosting his next community-wide healthy living event on Sunday, Nov. 9 with the annual Mayor’s Challenge 5K. 

For more information about the YMCA Diabetes Prevention Program, visit ymcamidtn.org/diabetes-prevention.