Nina Lovern, shown above with Steve Cobb, is an RN at Pardee Hospital and coordinator of the diabetes program. She recently gave a presentation entitled “Why Do You Even Care About Diabetes?” to the Tryon Kiwanis Club. Her answer to that question was that diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in North Carolina. Her first recommendation to prevent diabetes is to “be active.” Meal planning is also very important in the effort to avoid and treat diabetes. Lovern cited the importance of carefully choosing the foods that you eat. She said half of your dinner plate should be composed of non-starchy vegetables like salad and other greens, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, green beans and carrots. One-fourth should contain a starchy food such as noodles, rice, corn or potatoes. Finally, the other one-fourth section is for meat, fish, chicken, eggs or tofu. Adding an 8-ounce glass of milk and a small piece of fruit completes a well-balanced meal. Of course, she said, another component in the fight against diabetes is portion control – do not overeat. Diabetes is also a cardiovascular risk, Lovern said. Everyone should have a blood sugar test annually. Normal blood sugar count is slightly less than 100. Lovern also said you can go to diabetes.org/risktest to calculate your chances for Type 2 or Pre-Diabetes. (photo submitted by Lynn Montgomery)