They are low or no-cost programs that help adults prevent the onset of a chronic condition or help adults with a chronic disease learn how to manage and improve their health. These programs are all evidence-based and include interactive activities that promote a healthy and active lifestyles and focus on problems that are common to individuals dealing with or preventing a chronic disease. The programs can improve your quality of life while reducing your health care costs if you have a chronic disease by preventing or minimizing the effects of a disease.
Currently the Decatur County Family YMCA has three Evidence-Based Health Intervention Programs.
Research shows that exercise benefits people with Parkinson's Disease. Participating in regular exercise can help your body cope with the disease and results in stabilization or improvement of symptoms.
One in three American Adults have high blood pressure. Participants will work with trained Healthy Heart Ambassadors for the duration of the four-month program.
The YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program helps adults at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes reduce their risk for developing the disease by taking steps that will improve their overall health and well-being. The program consists of 25 one-hour sessions delivered over the course of a year. Research by the National Institutes of Health has shown that programs like the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program can reduce the number of new cases of type 2 diabetes by 58%, and 71% in adults over the age of 60. To participate in the program, you must be: 18 years or older, overweight (BMI > 25) and diagnosed with Prediabetes via fasting or 2-hour Plasma Glucose, A1c level, or a previous diagnosis of gestational diabetes. If blood test are not available, a qualifying risk score is based on a combination of risk factors. The program meets the Center for Disease Control's (CDC) diabetes prevention recognition program standards.