By Heather Jensen Weekend Anchor/Reporter
News 3 On Your Side
Wednesday is World Diabetes Day, and Columbus Mayor Jim Wetherington is getting the word out by getting tested.News 3 On Your Side
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Stumble It!The mayor took a shot to test his glucose level Wednesday morning at the Hilton Garden Inn in North Columbus.
The test and the press conference were to educate seniors about diabetes and Medicare benefits.
Medicare offers free diabetes testing for seniors.
The mayor and others were tested at the hands of Councilman Jerry "Pop" Barnes. Barnes is a registered nurse who knows the value of diabetes education.
“There are a number of people who don't realize they have diabetes where a simple screening, checking, particularly seniors 65 years or older to get this,” Barnes says. “Diabetes is a disease that attacks every major organ system of the body but at the same time, it is so easy to be managed.”
News 3 is On Your Side with the numbers for diabetes.
According to the Medicare Diabetes Screening Project, more than 400,000 seniors in Georgia have undiagnosed diabetes or pre-diabetes. 12,000 of those are in Columbus.
Diabetes is a disorder of the metabolism that affects the level of insulin in the body. Diabetes can lead to other more serious conditions like high blood pressure or even heart attack. Both diabetes and pre-diabetes can often be treated or managed with testing, diet, and exercise.
For seniors (age 65 or older), Medicare pays for that testing as well as supplies. And the Medicare Diabetes Screening Project provides lifestyle education to keep your risks low.
For more information on diabetes or the Medicare Diabetes Screening Project, call the Columbus Research Foundation at (706) 322-1700.
