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ASU students and alumni work to reduce diabetes in Latino community, through research

Vehicles pass in front of the ASU College of Nursing and Health Innovation in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, on Monday, Nov. 8, 2015.

Vehicles pass in front of the ASU College of Nursing and Health Innovation in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, on Monday, Nov. 8, 2015.


Latino youth are at a high risk for developing diabetes and a group of ASU students and alumni are working together on a collaborative study to find ways to prevent it. 

“Every Little Step Counts” is an initiative designed to create a healthy lifestyle educational program for Latino children who are at the highest risk for Type 2 diabetes. The project was first initiated by Saint Vincent De Paul Medical and Dental Clinic's Family Wellness Program in 2005, where the clinic offered nutritional classes for Latino youth.

ASU’s College of Nursing and Health Solutions began collaborating with the clinic in 2007, creating a physical activity portion for the program and evaluating its effectiveness through long-term research.

The program includes nutrition and physical activity classes for Latino teenagers in the community, said Allison Williams, the project manager and an ASU alumna. Before and after the teenagers participate in the 12-week program, Williams said they attend health screenings throughout the year conducted by ASU students and alumni.

“The purpose of the project is to see if a 12-week nutrition education and physical activity program can improve diabetes risk and the quality of life in Latino teenagers,” Williams said.

Williams said she got involved in ELSC because she enjoys studies that are related to health in the Latino community.

“I really liked the way that community-based research bridges academics and community practice and has an immediate impact on the health and well-being of families,” Williams said. “I am also Latina so being involved in a project that can help improve the health of the community was really important to me.”

Williams said her favorite part about the project is “seeing a kid that’s pre-diabetic no longer be pre-diabetic and thinking about all of the progress that kid has made.”

Like Williams, Anna Cisneros, an intervention coach for ELSC and a recent ASU graduate, loves seeing the participants progress throughout the program. Cisneros trains the youth three days a week at the Lincoln Family YMCA alongside Estela Barraza, another coach. Cisneros said her goal is to inspire the teenagers to be physically active through positive reinforcement and encouragement.

“'Every Little Step Counts' is like my baby,” Cisneros said. “My favorite part is interacting with the youth and being with them every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”

Cisneros said that it’s satisfying to see the youth participants grow more confident throughout the program. She explained that one of the boys she coached came into the program constantly doubting his athletic ability.

“After the program, he actually tried out for the high school football team and made it,” Cisneros said. “When he came back he said, ’Miss, I remember when you kept telling me that I had to imagine a finish line and I had to run all the way through.’ That was really rewarding.”

For Hanna Rahman, a Kinesiology senior and an ELSC research assistant, the most rewarding part of the work is seeing the progress through the research. Rahman conducts the health screenings for the Latino teens. She leads treadmill tests and questionnaires about their mental health.

“The population that we’re working with is a very minority group of kids,” Rahman said. “The fact that we get to work with a community that is sometimes overlooked was something that was very appealing to me.”

Rahman said working for ELSC gives her hands-on experience in analyzing the data the workers collect, and she's astounded by the teenagers' results.

“The fact that their physical activity levels are increasing because of an intervention program is amazing,” Rahman said.

Related Links:

ASU researchers: almonds, vinegar benefit diabetic health

Sorority dances for diabetes awareness


Reach the reporter at ambice@asu.edu or follow @alliebice on Twitter.

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