The ‘Most Diabetic Place in America’ begins the battle to change that label

NEWPORT, Arkansas — The “Most Diabetic Place in America” is fighting to erase that label.

News, Diabetes, Public HealthKatherine MitchellDecember 22, 2021Diabetes, obesity, Newport, Arkansas, Dr. Bala Simon, Jackson County, Dr. Dudley, prediabetes, Most diabetic place in America, Jackson County Wellness and Screening

How processed and preserved foods have changed our tastes and waists over time

For years, retired pharmacist Judy Wolverton Palmer was addicted to peanut butter, digging into any jar she could find.

She battled both weight and health issues, including chronic pain, skin issues, prediabetes, asthma and gastrointestinal problems.

News, Mississippi News, Mississippi Spotlight, Public HealthKatherine MitchellNovember 15, 2021Mississippi, food pantry, Mississippi delta, Lexington food pantry, Processed foods, weight gain, diabetes, food addiction, food industry, added sugar, sodium, obesity, brain, poverty

The ‘Most Diabetic Place in America’ grapples with the devastating disease that affects nearly 1 in 3 residents

NEWPORT, Arkansas – This is the most diabetic place in America.

None of those interviewed knew that. Not even the mayor. “I didn’t know it until you told me,” Mayor David Stewart said.

Over the past 3 years, diabetes has killed more Americans than all the wars over the past century. Mississippi is ‘ground zero’ in that fight.

Bombs are exploding across the nation, with injuries and casualties reaching the millions, but few recognize the war that is taking place, experts say.

That war is diabetes, and Mississippi is ground zero, the only state in the nation where every county is in what researchers call the diabetes belt.

News, Civil RIghts, Diabetes, Public HealthKatherine MitchellSeptember 8, 2021Diabetes, healthy food, food access, obesity, Diabetes belt, Stephen Farrow, Dan Hurley, poverty, processed foods, Mississippi Delta