Making Connections News

Avoiding type 2 diabetes is always a good thing for your health. But health professionals say that diabetes is one of several underlying conditions that could make the symptoms of COVID-19 more severe and potentially deadly. In this story we meet Marilyn Morgan, of Johnson County, and Connie Godsey Duvall, of Cumberland County, two eastern Kentuckians who, despite the difficulties posed by the pandemic, are meeting the challenge of preventing type 2 diabetes head-on. Both have been participating in their local version of the National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), and both say the program has helped them not just lose weight, but also keep it off. Also featured is Mary Beth Castle, DPP Lifestyle Coach at the Johnson Co. Health Department, who speaks about her efforts to guide participants through the DPP process amidst the unique circumstances of a worldwide pandemic.