Jefferson and Orleans Parish takes aim at diabetes with prevention programs

Jennifer Ford tipped the scale at 400 pounds in 2009. She was drinking five 20-ounce soft drinks a day and wanted to make change in her life. She tried to do a spin class at her local gym and couldn't participate. Now, she weighs 178 pounds and has become a YMCA diabetes prevention coach and fitness specialist. Ford, 39, enthusiastically shares her story with anyone who is willing to listen. "Every day I feel like a new person," Ford said. "It's like I have a new body." Ford, from Algiers, shared some of her tale July 24 at the East Jefferson YMCA, 6691 Riverside Drive, Metairie. Ford was among the featured speakers at a program where the Humana Foundation presented a $60,000 grant to the YMCA of Greater New Orleans diabetes prevention program. Other speakers included YMCA leaders, Jefferson Parish President Mike Yenni, and Humana Foundation representatives. "I jokingly made a bet with a friend that I could lose 10 pounds," Ford said. "To lose those 10 pounds and win the bet I went to a gym to participate in a spin class. But because of my size I couldn't even do the class."

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