Project Assignment Page In this assignment, you are invited to continue the work of the outline assignment by composing a research project that includes at least one source and idea for each main par

The first question I asked is “How many people in the Imperial Valley have diabetes?”  This is the most important question because I need to show that the number is not only high, but it is the highest in the Imperial Valley. I found a secondary source that has information from a UCLA study conducted on diabetes in California and more specifically in Imperial County. Alliance Health Care Foundation is a health and wellness foundation for San Diego and Imperial County. The information they put out is to help make people aware of the health conditions and issues of both counties as well as offer health solutions. I was trying to find the original study conducted by UCLA because I feel that would be a stronger source but had no luck in finding it. According to this source, the study conducted by UCLA in 2016 showed that 55% of the state has either prediabetes or are diabetic. In Imperial County alone the number is 62% of the population. I feel that this information is extremely helpful for two reasons. First, it establishes the number for all of California, which is already a high number, more than half of the state either has or is at risk for having this chronic disease. Second, it shows that the Imperial County population has an even higher number. As we learn how this chronic disease negatively affects people, we will learn why it's important to come up with a solution.

https://alliancehf.org/news/ahf-august-blog-majority-californians-prediabetic-or-diabetic/ (Links to an external site.)

The second question I would like to have an answer to is “Why do so many people in the Imperial Valley have diabetes?” Once we know how many people have diabetes and realize that it is one of the highest numbers in California, we need to know why or how this is happening. I searched to find what the biggest contributors to diabetes are. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, being overweight or obese and inactive makes it more likely to get type 2 diabetes. I did not find anything that showed exactly why the numbers for the Imperial Valley are so high. But if we can also look at the numbers of obesity in the Imperial Valley then we can see that it is a direct link to why diabetes is so high. The biggest reason is due to lifestyle. This article goes on to explain how being overweight will cause insulin resistance. It specifically mentions how belly fat is linked to type 2 diabetes. I believe this article is a good resource because it is based on actual research. It is found by the US department of health and human services.

https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/symptoms-causes#:~:text=Overweight%2C%20obesity%2C%20and%20physical%20inactivity,fat%20also%20makes%20a%20difference (Links to an external site.).

My third question “How can we lower the numbers of diabetes in the Imperial Valley?”. Here we need to find out what the solutions are to help lower Diabetes here in the Valley. If we have the highest numbers of diabetes it affects the community. Most importantly, I think, if we do not solve this problem now then kids will be affected by this issue. I found a great article on childhood obesity. It is a study conducted in the Imperial Valley, in the National Institutes of Health’s National Library of Medicine, it is a reliable resource. The reasons I chose this article, besides the facts that t is reliable, and a study based in the Imperial Valley, it offers solutions or changes that can be made to solve the problem. This article has suggestions for helping the community through family intervention, healthcare intervention, public health intervention, and community recreation organizations and restaurants are included. The article offers solutions such as family switching television time to active play. Nutrition communication, changing Mexican diets with healthier ingredients. New policies of treatments in local clinics to help obese children. This study offers ways to help children and stop habits early that can lead to adult diabetes.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4323021/