What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a life-long disease that affects the way your body handles glucose, a kind of sugar, in your blood. Your body changes most of the food you eat into glucose, which your body uses for energy. Your blood takes the glucose to the cells throughout your body. Your blood always has some glucose in it. But too much glucose in the blood is not good for your health. Diabetes means that your blood glucose (sugar) is too high.

The glucose from food needs insulin to get into the body's cells. Insulin is a hormone made in the pancreas, an organ near the stomach. The pancreas releases insulin into the blood. If your body does not make enough insulin or the insulin does not work right, the glucose can't get into the cells, so it stays in the blood. This makes your blood glucose level high, causing you to have diabetes.

There are four types of diabetes described below.  Click on the links to learn more.

Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP)

Lifestyle change programs offered through the National Diabetes Prevention Program, which is led by CDC, can help participants adopt the healthy habits needed to prevent type 2 diabetes.  Trained lifestyle change coaches lead classes to help participants improve their food choices, increase physical activity, and learn coping skills to maintain weight loss and healthy lifestyle changes.

If you have or are at risk for prediabetes, lifestyle changes such as healthy eating, increased physical activity, and losing just 5-7% of body weight, can help you prevent diabetes. The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) is an evidence-based program that can help you make these changes and prevent diabetes. Recognized DPPs are listed on the CDC registry at https://nccd.cdc.gov/DDT_DPRP/Registry.aspx or simply dial 211 for a DPP near you.

• Wash your hands often with soap and water. If you don’t have soap and water, use a hand sanitizer that is at least 60% alcohol based.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces.
• Stay home when you’re sick, and keep your children home when they’re sick.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your upper sleeve or elbow, not your hands.
• Try not to touch your face with unwashed hands.
• Don’t touch or shake hands with people who are sick .

Download these educational materials:

• Prevent Respiratory Illness - English (PDF, 200KB)
• Childrens Handwashing Sign - English   (PDF, 500KB)
• Childrens Handwashing Sign - Spanish  (PDF, 3.5MB)
• Childrens Handwashing - Letter Size (PDF, 488KB)

What makes you click?

Your child makes you click and that’s why the Florida Department of Health’s What makes you click? campaign was designed to increase injury prevention awareness: click helmet straps before biking or riding a scooter, and click lifejackets before swimming and boating. For more safety tips, visit WaterSmartFL and Safe Kids Florida.

*NEW *  Safe-At-Home:  Drowning Prevention

There are many reasons to quit tobacco, find yours at Tobacco Free Florida and Tobacco Free St. Johns .

Sign Up for a Smoking Cessation Program

QUIT YOUR WAY

Whatever your reason to quit is, Tobacco Free Florida offers free tools and services to help you get started.

SMOKING AND COVID-19:
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The scientific and medical community is learning more about the health implications smoking has on COVID-19, but there are reasons for concern. We do know that COVID-19 patients who smoke might be at higher risk for severe disease or death from COVID-19.¹

Know the Risks

Tobacco Free Florida is Here to Help

If you ever had a reason to quit smoking, here’s another one. The best thing you can do for your health is to stop smoking. If you need help quitting, Tobacco Free Florida offers free tools and services, like 24/7 access to speak to a Quit Coach and a 2-week supply of nicotine patches, gum or lozenges shipped to your home. Learn more about all our tools and services at: tobaccofreeflorida.com/quityourway.

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preliminary Estimates of the Prevalence of Selected Underlying Health Conditions Among Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 — United States, February 12–March 28, 2020. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2020;69:382–386. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6913e2. Accessed April 3, 2020.
2. Strzelak, Agnieszka et al. “Tobacco Smoke Induces and Alters Immune Responses in the Lung Triggering Inflammation, Allergy, Asthma and Other Lung Diseases: A Mechanistic Review.” International journal of environmental research and public health vol. 15,5 1033. 21 May. 2018, doi:10.3390/ijerph15051033. Accessed April 3, 2020.
   
3. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Health Consequences of Smoking: 50 Years of Progress. A Report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Offce on Smoking and Health, 2014. Printed with corrections, January 2014. Accessed April 3, 2020.
   
4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “People at Risk for Serious Illness from COVID-19.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10 Mar. 2020, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specifc-groups/high-riskcomplications.html. Accessed April 3, 2020.

Learn more at TobaccoFreeFlorida.com/COVID19
and CDC.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov.

Educate yourself on what is known about vaping (E-Cigarette Use) devices that have risen in popularity across the state. Learn more at TobaccoFreeFlorida.com – E-EPIDEMIC: VAPING AND YOUTH.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has more information about E-Cigarette, or Vaping, product-use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI).

E-Cigarette videos:

• CDC — E-Cigarette 101
• CDC — Robbing the Future
• TobaccoFreeFlorida — Flavored Disposable Products
• TobaccoFreeFlorida — Mobilize From Epidemic to Action

2019 Florida Youth Risk Behavior Survey Report (YRBS)

The YRBS provides school districts and their community partners with data that identify the most critical issues and needs of Florida's public high school students.

Go To and Read

Take the Florida Health 60-DAYS to Better Health Challenge!

Small Steps to Living Healthy: Healthy Eating

Visit our March: National Nutrition Month Event for information and resources for a Healthful Lifestyle from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Coming soon...

April marks the return of our WIC Farmers Market season in collaboration with the Florida Department of Agriculture. A Farmers Market stand open to all, will be on site in the parking lot of the Health and Human Services Building.

Specific days and times to follow. Please take advantage of this great opportunity to access locally grown fruits and vegetables!

If  you are a WIC recipient and have any questions on the Farmers Market Nutrition Program please call or visit the DOH – St. Johns WIC office.

10 Tips to Make Eating Health Easy (PDF, 2MB)

WHO Video — #40seconds
Suicide Prevention Campaign
(Video Length 0:51)

It’s okay to not be okay, but there are a lot of people who want to help you get better. If you’re thinking about hurting yourself or like life isn’t worth it, reach out now!

Get Immediate Help in a Crisis: 

• Call 9-1-1

• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

  • 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for English
  • 1-888-628-9454 for Spanish
  • TTY 1-800-799-4889
  • Lifeline Crisis Chat
  • www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org

• Disaster Distress Helpline

  • 1-800-985-5990 (press 2 for Spanish)
  • Text " TalkWithUs" for English to 66746
  • Text " Hablanos" for Spanish to 66746
  • Spanish speakers from Puerto Rico can text " Hablanos" to 1-787-339-2663.

• National Domestic Violence Hotline

  • 1-800-799-7233
  • Text " LOVEIS" to 22522
  • TTY  1-800-787-3224

• National Child Abuse Hotline

  • 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453)
  • Text 1-800-422-4453

• National Sexual Assault Hotline

  • 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) 
  • Online Chat

• The Eldercare Locator

  • 1-800-677-1116
  •   TTY Instructions

• Trevor Helpline/ Trevor Project

  • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgender (LGBT) Youth Crisis Intervention / Suicide Prevention
  • Call 24/7/365: 1-866-488-7386
  • Text:  START to  678-678
  • Chat

• Veteran’s Crisis Line

  • 1-800-273-TALK (8255) and Press 1
  • Text: 8388255
  • Crisis Chat 
  • Support for deaf and hard of hearing 1-800-799-4889

• Crisis Text Line

  • Text " HOME" to 741741
  • TTY 1-800-799-4889
  • www.CrisisTextLine.org

• The Fire Watch - NE Florida's fight to end veteran suicide

  • Veteran Suicide Line: 1-800-273-8255
  • Northeast Florida Military / Veteran Resource Guide

Find a health care provider or treatment for substance use disorder and mental health:

• SAMHSA’s National Helpline

  • 1-800-662-HELP (4357)
  • TTY 1-800-487-4889

• Treatment Services Locator Website

• Interactive Map of Selected Federally Qualified Health Centers

• The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention-Mental Health & COVID-19

What is Suicide?

CDC Video — What is Suicide?
(Video Length 1:38)

Resources:

• The World Health Organization — (WHO)

  • #HealthyAtHome - Mental Health
  • Suicide Prevention
    • Suicide: facts and figures
    • Resource Booklets for preventing suicide

• The Centers for Disease Control — (CDC)

  • Coping with Stress
  • Suicide Prevention

• St. Johns County Statistical Data

Download the PDF

Community Linkages

Aza (Previously Azalea) Health

Flagler Health+

LGBT Health Services — CDC

St. Johns Care Connect

The Fire Watch - NE Florida's fight to end veteran suicide

Tobacco Free St. Johns

Wildflower Healthcare