Elizabeth City ministers offer help fighting diabetes

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C.

Some 35 people wearing sweats and T-shirts shook their stuff to blasting, beating music Dec. 4 with Pastor Larry Brown and his wife in the lead, sweating along with the rest.

Each Sunday, about an hour after the worshiping ends at Faith & Victory Christian Center, the workouts begin. The program is a way for Larry and Gloria Brown to help their congregation ward off diabetes - the fourth-leading cause of death among blacks in this country.

The Browns and four other ministers in the Elizabeth City area have signed on to an effort that uses spiritual leaders, rather than medical experts, to persuade those in the black community to get more diabetes screenings, eat better, get more exercise and generally improve their chances of avoiding the disease.

The incidence of diagnosed adult diabetes is 13.4 percent among blacks, compared with 6.4 percent among whites, according to a 2006 national study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By far, Southeastern states have the highest occurrence - including northeastern North Carolina and parts of southeastern Virginia, according to CDC maps.

But few blacks volunteer for clinical studies on diabetes, and in general blacks are not heeding warnings about the disease, said Dr. Anthony Emekalam, an assistant professor of pharmacy at Elizabeth City State University.

"Why?" Emekalam asked. "Studies show that African Americans do not trust the health care system. Who do they trust? You'll find that they trust their pastors. How about using pastors as a channel to reach them?"

Reasons for the mistrust go back generations, to a time when blacks were sometimes the subjects of medical experiments, he said.

Last year, Emekalam received a $27,000 grant from the Medical University of South Carolina, paid for by the CDC. He is getting another $20,000 grant this year.

Ministers who become part of his program receive training in diet, exercise and blood screening, among other things. They lead the effort, not Emekalam, the professor said. Members get reminders in the church bulletin - and from the pulpit, as well. Church socials feature less fatty foods and more vegetables.

"This has been an eye-opener," Brown said. "They have shown me so much."

Tyrone Heckstall, 50, was a borderline diabetic with high blood pressure when he heard Brown speak on the threat of diabetes. He went to his doctor, cut back on pies and potato salad, ate more vegetables and began working out, including attending the dance/exercise sessions at church. Heckstall said he lost 45 pounds and no longer needs to take blood pressure pills.

"I feel great," he said, sweat dripping from his forehead from a recent Sunday workout. "As a church family, we've got to look out for each other."

Shortly after the vigorous warm-ups, Pastor Lin Bennett from New Calvary Missionary Baptist Church arrived to lead the group in a professional workout. Bennett also leads workout sessions at the YMCA. In minutes, different music rocked from the large speakers as Bennett called out moves.

Most participants were middle-age and many were overweight, but they pushed themselves through, smiling through the grunts.

"You've got to have fun with it," Brown said, puffing.

Emekalam is seeking another grant for 2012 and plans to recruit a few more ministers to the effort.

"You don't have to move a mountain," Emekalam said. "We can't expect to erase it overnight."

Jeff Hampton, (252) 338-0159, jeff.hampton@pilotonline.com