KINGSTON TOWNSHIP -- According to the American Diabetes Association, in 2012, 29.1 million Americans, or more than nine percent of the population, had diabetes.
A doctor in Texas created a program to help Type 2 diabetics reverse the disease and now a pharmacy in our area is one of the first to offer it.
According to its owner, Cook's Pharmacy in Shavertown sees a lot of people on a daily basis who deal with diabetes.
You can buy special footwear for diabetics there, along with the usual medication and supplies.
But owner and pharmacist Frank Lombardo says not needing all of this would be even better.
"You can get your insulin or diabetic medication at any pharmacy. We're the only ones offering an alternative solution. And I really like that," Lombardo said.
He's talking about a new program offered by the pharmacy called "Help Your Diabetes," an approach founded by Dr. Jeff Hockings in Dallas, Texas. The two met at a conference and Lombardo was immediately interested in bringing the program to this area.
"We can clinically get people to become non-diabetic, that means getting them off their diabetic medications," Lombardo said.
"Help Your Diabetes" is a blueprint for Type 2 diabetics to take charge of their own health, using education, coaching, supplements and diet changes.
It's meant to be used with a doctor, not instead of a doctor.
Those interested will first have a consultation with Lombardo to see if they're the right fit. The pharmacist says two of his grandparents died from complications of diabetes, a disease that can lead to amputations, blindness, and kidney failure.
He would like to see people have the tools to not just manage diabetes but improve or even reverse it.
"They think because they're taking their medication, the way the doctor prescribes, they'll be good forever. That is not necessarily the case" Lombardo added.
"Help Your Diabetes" is not a free program and it's not covered by insurance. You can contact Cook's Pharmacy in Shavertown at 570-675-1191 if you'd like more information.