Health

USVI Battles with Diabetes as Sixth Leading Cause of Death

Wednesday’s meeting of the Committee on Health, Hospitals and Human Services to discuss the public health challenges in managing diabetes in the territory revealed that immediate interventions are necessary.  According to Julia Sheen, executive director of the Virgin Islands Diabetes Center of Excellence (VIDCOE), diabetes is the 6th leading cause of death in the USVI, with over 12,000 people currently known to be living with the disease. Several risk factors exist in the population, she said, including insufficient exercise and a tendency to eat unbalanced diets. While women show up more frequently in diabetes numbers, Ms. Sheen noted that it could simply be a case of underreporting in men. Statistics on diabetic children were largely excluded from Ms. Sheen’s testimony, prompting Senator Diane Capehart to ask “how many children in the Virgin Islands have diabetes?” In a response that left legislators with more questions than answers, Ms. Sheen revealed that she could not find any d...