NPR Examines Sisters’ Efforts To Fight Diabetes on Navajo Indian Reservation
NPR's "Day to Day" on Wednesday profiled sisters Leda Scott -- a diabetes community health nurse in Winslow, Ariz. -- and Laura Cleland, who are "waging a battle against diabetes" on the Navajo Nation, the largest American Indian reservation in the U.S.
Almost one-fourth of American Indian adults have diabetes, a rate nearly three times that of other U.S. adults. American Indians also have one of the highest rates of diabetes-related amputations in the world, according to NPR.
Scott recently launched a wellness and exercise center on the reservation, while Cleland runs a company that distributes therapeutic shoes to people with diabetes on the reservation.
Frank Armao, clinical director at the Winslow Indian Health Care Center, said a "confluence of a lot of unfortunate circumstances" contributes to the high diabetes rate among American Indians, including obesity, poverty and low physical activity (Kraker, "Day to Day," NPR, 10/10).
Audio of the segment is available online.