CALIFORNIA LEADS IN DIABETICS UCLA STUDY FINDS POOR, MINORITIES HARDEST HIT.

Byline: Dana Bartholomew Staff Writer

As Californians grow ever fatter, so does the danger of diabetes - with rural residents, the poor, Latinos and African-Americans especially hard hit, according to a study released Tuesday.

Nearly 1.5 million California adults suffer from diabetes, with an additional 1.8 million borderline cases who are overweight and sedentary, according to the report. Also at risk are 176,000 obese adolescents.

California now leads the nation in every age group through 65 in diabetes - a deadly disease that puts one out of seven adults at risk.

``As Californians in ever-increasing numbers fall victim to obesity and inactivity, we're seeing a corresponding increase in one of the nation's most prevalent chronic conditions,'' said Dr. Allison L. Diamant of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, author of the study.

``The tragedy is that this largely preventable killer is incurable.''

The center's report, ``Diabetes in California: Findings from the 2001 California Health Interview Survey,'' financed by The California Endowment of Woodland Hills, interviewed 55,000 residents and offers the first county-by-county snapshot of diabetes in the state.

In Los Angeles County, 6.3 percent of adults ages 18 and over were diagnosed with diabetes, compared with 4.9 percent in Ventura County and 5.9 percent across the state and nation.

Diabetes, characterized by too much glucose (sugar) in the blood, is the seventh-leading cause of death and a major cause of kidney failure, blindness, nontraumatic amputations, heart disease and strokes.

Researchers found that the disease was far more prevalent among the elderly, particularly African-Americans and Latinos.

While 12.2 percent of whites over 65 had contracted the disease, the rate more than doubled for African-Americans (25.6 percent), and Latinos (24.4 percent).

``It's something very close to my heart, because my father was a diabetic and my husband is diabetic and even went through a kidney transplant,'' said Rosemary Muniz, co-chairwoman of the Third Annual Latino Diabetes Education Seminar, which drew 250 Hispanics to California State University, Northridge, on Saturday.

``We need to educate (Latinos) to eat correctly, not use lard, use less starch, eat more fruit and vegetables and exercise, No. 1.''

Among the study's findings:

--Diabetes was more than twice as common among adults who never attended high school (9.9 percent) as among college graduates (4.3 percent).

--Because of differing rates of obesity, health care and income, diabetes was more prevalent in rural areas, with the highest rate in Tulare County (9.9 percent) and lowest in Marin County (3.7 percent).

--One out of four California adults, and 32 percent of Latinos, with diabetes take no medication, compared with the national rate of 13.4 percent.

--Nearly 114,000 Californians with diabetes report they have no insurance coverage for prescription drugs, while 82,000 adults lack regular care because they do not have medical insurance.

What's needed, study authors said, are policies aimed at preventing obesity, ensuring access to health care, healthier food at school and greater choice of affordable fruits and vegetables.

Dr. Bill Releford, founder of the Amputation Prevention Foundation who works with Inglewood diabetes patients at risk of losing their feet, said it's especially hard to convince people to change their diets.

``We are inundated with fast food, super-sizes and the 39-cent hamburger - how can I compete with a 39-cent hamburger?'' he lamented.

``I don't call 'em hamburgers, I call 'em murder burgers - these are weapons of mass destruction.''

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SOURCE: 2001 California Health Interview Survey

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