It’s a fact that of the 3% of the population who have diabetes about one million people do not know that they have it.  So Tonbridge Lions Club will be offering free diabetes screening in the Tonbridge Angel Centre car park on 18th and 19th August 2007.

Diabetes is a serious condition because it can affect many parts of the body.  Many people are not diagnosed with the condition until the complications of diabetes have already started to develop – blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, stroke and nerve damage that could lead to amputations.  But spotting diabetes early enables treatment, either through diet and exercise or tablets and sometimes insulin, thus reducing the risk of the development of serious complications.

Qualified medical staff from Medix will carry out the screening, 

which involves a very simple blood test with an immediate result.  The test will measure the blood sugar level and is best done two hours after eating.   

The Screening Centre will be open from 10am until 6pm on Saturday and 10am to 2 pm on Sunday. The Lions expect to screen 500 – 600 people. There will be no charge for the test, as all costs will be met by Tonbridge Lions Club