MOULTRIE — It is no secret that a large percentage of south Georgians are overweight, but new information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show an alarming trend in diabetes cases.

In the 14-county Southwest Georgia Public Health District, Colquitt is in the middle of the pack, but still comes in at three percentage points above the national average with 10.9 percent of adults diagnosed with diabetes.

According to the CDC’s study, the percentage of adults in Georgia increased from 4.6 percent in 1994 to 10.4 percent in 2006.

“Georgia’s rate is the second-highest, surpassed only by Mississippi,” said Dr. Jacqueline Grant, southwest health district director. “An estimated 10.3 percent of the adults in Lee County have diabetes, according to the CDC. And Lee County has the lowest percentage of all of our counties.”

The highest rates of diabetes in the district were in Calhoun County, at 13.5 percent, and Dougherty County’s 13.4 percent.

The highest rates of the disease were among black women, according to the CDC.

Diabetes increases the risk for health complications including blindness, amputations, cardiovascular disease, kidney damage and death, Grant said. It can be controlled through diet, exercise and medication.

“The risk of death among people with diabetes is about twice that of people of the same age who do not have diabetes,” she said. “But by exchanging unhealthy behaviors for healthy behaviors, people with diabetes can significantly improve their health status and their quality of life.”

In addition, people with prediabetes can reduce or delay the development of diabetes by losing weight and increasing physical activity, Grant said.

In Colquitt County, a federally funded program helps families eat healthier and save money as well.

The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program assisted 168 families last year and hopes to increase that to 225 in 2010, said Andrea Scarrow, family and consumer sciences extension agent for Colquitt County.

The three program assistants make food preparation presentations to groups and even go into homes for individual instruction.

Information can range from tips such as picking up meat last during a shopping trip to prevent having it unrefrigerated for more than the two-hour safe limit, to showing individuals how to prepare nutritious recipes in their homes, Scarrow said. Two of the assistants work out of the Ellenton Health Clinic, which serves many in the migrant community, but the program is available countywide.

“We reach a wide range of the population,” Scarrow said. “On average these families saved $21 per family on food per month. That adds up over a year.”

Ninety-eight percent of families see a positive change in diet, and 99 percent improved nutrition practices, she said.

The family and consumer sciences service has other programs, and is one of a number of groups that are partnering with the recently announced Healthy Colquitt Coalition to promote more healthy lifestyles.

Greg Coop, CEO of YMCA, which is the organizer in the Healthy Colquitt Coalition effort, said the diabetes numbers are eye-opening.

“Those were not good results, again,” he said. “That’s just a consequence of our lifestyles.”

The coalition is holding a meeting at 2:30 p.m. Thursday at Moultrie Technical College. Coop said that he has invited a number of groups to the meeting, but community members can call him at (229) 985-4545 if they are interested in attending.