Memphis Mayor Paul Young calls for Type One Diabetes screenings, declares Memphis to honor National Diabetes Awareness Day
Memphis Mayor Paul Young will declare a city-wide “Day of Screening” for Type One Diabetes at a news conference on Friday, November 1, at 12:00 PM at Memphis City Hall in the Hall of Mayors. The First Lady of Memphis, Jamila Smith-Young, a nurse practitioner who
specializes in the treatment of type one diabetes at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, will be
named the champion of this innovative initiative to identify people with specific gene markers
making them more susceptible to the chronic condition. “Knowledge is power, and it is vital for
more of our community to be screened,” says Mayor Paul Young.
The Day of Screening is being spearheaded by Dr. Kashif Latif of AM Diabetes and
Endocrinology Center. “Screening has become a vital tool as we learn new ways to treat this yet
incurable disease,” says Latif.
Type one diabetes is a chronic condition that occurs when the pancreas doesn’t produce
enough insulin or doesn’t produce it at all. Usually, the body’s immune system attacks the
insulin-producing cells of the pancreas. This is why it is considered an auto-immune disease.
The screening will not prevent the onset of type one diabetes, but it can give doctors and patients
valuable time that can be used to prepare the patient both mentally and physically for how a
diagnosis will change their life.
Dr. Latif recommends, “Anyone with a first-degree relative (parent, brother or sister) who has
type one diabetes should be tested.” This latest screening process allows a person to screen at
home. A small amount of blood is collected using a finger prick and then shipped to a lab for
processing. Results usually are available in 10-14 days. As part of the Day of Screening in
Memphis, the at-home kits will be made available at several locations to be announced, including
AM Diabetes and Endocrinology Center.
Contact: [email protected]
Arlenia Cole, Media Affairs Manager [email protected]