b'Welcome to Our Special IssueWe are pleased to have the opportunity to partner with IMARA Woman Magazine to bring you this special edition focused on health. As you may be aware, prediabetes, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure (hypertension) and heart disease greatly affect African American communities in South Carolina. African Americans live sicker and die at greater rates from these chronic diseases compared to other racial and ethnic groups. The COVID 19 pandemic has profoundly impacted the lives of individuals suffering from these conditions, not only in lives lost, but from the potential long-term effects that may result from contracting the virus.As you read the information, we encourage you to do the follow:Create an action plan for better health for you and your family Share the information with your friends and communityUse the resources in this edition to find out where you can join a diabetes prevention program or how you can participate in a self-monitoring blood pressure programLearn how to prepare healthy mealsIncorporate physical activity in your daily lifeOn behalf of the Diabetes Action Council of South Carolina and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control Division of Diabetes and Heart Disease Management, take care of your body and it will take care of you.Wellness is a connection of paths: knowledge and action. - Joshua Holtz. Sincerely,Gerald Wilson, MDChairDiabetes Action Council of South Carolina(DAC)Shauna Hicks, MHS, CHES DirectorDr. Wilsons youngest son, Mark, Dr. Wilson, Cornell Wilson, III,Division of Diabetes and Heart Disease ManagementCornell Wilson and Dennis WilsonDHECPersonally, diabetes has been a significant factor in my life and there is a need to inform everyone about its consequences. Diabetes has affected many of my family members over several generations and I shudder to think what we have lost to undiagnosed disease. Lives could have been saved through prevention, early diagnosis, and treatment.Dr. Gerald Wilson.IMARA 5'