The St. Lawrence County Public Health Department is promoting awareness of diabetes for November, Diabetes Awareness Month.

Roughly one in 10 adults living in St. Lawrence County has a diagnosis of diabetes.

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when blood sugar levels are too high. It can cause stroke, vision loss, heart disease, kidney failure, and foot damage that could result in lower-limb amputation. These problems often lead to expensive medical appointments and hospitalization, a low quality of life, and even death.

Many people do not realize they have diabetes. The only way to know if you have diabetes is to get tested. Those who should consider testing are over the age of 45, are overweight, have high blood pressure, have high cholesterol, or have a family history of type 2 diabetes.

There isn’t a cure yet for diabetes, but healthy lifestyle habits, taking medicine as needed, getting diabetes self-management education, and keeping appointments with health care providers can greatly reduce its impact.

There are a handful of diabetes prevention and self-management programs across St. Lawrence County that can help people achieve their goals to prevent diabetes or manage the condition.

To learn more about the local programs, visit http://www.take-control.org/providers or call 315-755-7767 to be connected with a nearby program.