Diabetes and subsequent weight gain make healthy living a daily challenge

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By Isabel Garcia

Leticia Rodriguez – a 66-year-old Segundo Barrio resident – has lost vision in her left eye due to diabetes and says she struggles with everyday living because she is obese. Rodriguez has trouble getting into cars, can’t see her feet and her caregiver performs most of her day-to-day tasks for her because she’s suffering from diabetes and obesity. “My diabetes was part of losing my vision and then it went from there to not being able to lose weight,” Rodriguez said. “You go into all these diets and they work for a little bit, but you get it right back.”

Rodriguez has found support at Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe. Rodriguez is one of the 300,000 patients who use the services at La Fe.

El Pasoans eat fast food more than nine times a month. (Jeraldine Ramos/Borderzine.com)

Can a fat and diabetic El Paso become an active and healthy Sun City?

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EL PASO – As Guadalupe Vasquez prepares dinner for her family the aroma of Mexican food fills her El Paso home. After the meal, her family is often glued to the television set not part taking in any physical activities. She is aware that her family’s and other El Paso families’ diet and lack of physical activity make for an unhealthy combination. Studies have shown that Hispanics are more likely to suffer from obesity and type 2-diabetes and the mostly Hispanic residents of El Paso residents pose a perfect example of these health problems. According, to an article written in 2010 by Men’s Health Magazine, the city of El Paso ranked 3rd in the list of 100 fattest cities in the United States. Five Texas cities with a high percentage of Hispanics were among the top 10.

Guadalupe Vargas, 62, a diabetes patient, lives her life in bed. (Idalí Cruz/Borderzine.com)

Más de un millón de residentes de la frontera sufre de diabetes

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CIUDAD JUAREZ – Después de vivir veinte años con diabetes, ella no se puede levantar de la cama para ver sus telenovelas favoritas, y ocasionalmente platicar con su esposo o pedirle algo que ella necesita. Después de sufrir un fallo renal hace cuatro años Guadalupe Vargas, de 62 años, necesita diálisis peritoneal para limpiar sus riñones que dejaron de funcionar. “No, mi vida ya no es la misma, inclusive ya no puedo hacer quehacer, ya no veo tengo glaucoma y veo muy borroso.”

Pero Vargas no sufre sola. En una investigación titulada Diabetes Prevalece Study realizada por los Centros de Control y Prevención de Enfermedades de Los Estados Unidos y La Secretaria de Salud de México se concluye que más de 1.11 millones de habitantes de la región fronteriza padecen de diabetes. 40% del total habitan en México y el 11.6% habitan en Estados Unidos.

Guadalupe Vargas, 62, a diabetes patient, lives her life in bed. (Idalí Cruz/Borderzine.com)

More than a million border residents suffer from diabetes

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Lea esta historia en español

CIUDAD JUÁREZ – After 20 years with diabetes, she lives her life in bed, watching her favorite soap operas on T.V., occasionally talking to her husband or asking for something she needs. After suffering kidney failure four years ago Guadalupe Vargas, 62, needs peritoneal dialysis every four hours to clean her nonfunctioning kidneys. “My life is not the same anymore. I can’t do anything. Diabetes also affected my eyesight.

Zumba instructors and UTEP mascot, Paydirt Pete, entice people into healthy exercising. (Cassandra Morrill/Borderzine.com)

Health care information finds a new venue at the local zoo

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EL PASO – A different species of animal invaded the El Paso Zoo recently as some 20 community health agencies gathered there with the wildlife to focus the need human beings have for healthy living habits. The El Paso Zoo and the Woman’s Health Initiative (WHI) program at the University of Texas at El Paso came together on Saturday the 26th of February to broadcast a message about diabetes, HIV, and ways to improve health in a fun way. The zoo was filled with UTEP students in bright orange school colors and members of the community. “You can have fun and be healthy at the same time,” Arely Hernandez, member of the WHI, said. She added these types of events allow UTEP students to get their family and friends involved as well.

Diabetes affects thousands in El Paso, but the Diabetes Association is on their side

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EL PASO — Health is an issue people push aside until it finally becomes an issue and the main health issue in this border city is diabetes. El Paso has long been considered one of the unhealthiest cities in the entire country, ranking as high as number one in obesity by Men’s Fitness magazine in 2009. Diabetes is at the forefront of chronic ailments here and obesity is one of many risk factors for this disease. Ethnicity also plays a role. Hispanics, Native Americans, African Americans, Pacific Islanders and Asian Americans are at higher risk.