Giant Food Offers Diabetes Prevention Program

Giant Food is helping its customers prevent type 2 diabetes by offering the PreventT2 lifestyle change program in stores.

The initiative, which is part of the National Diabetes Prevention Program and led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is guided by in-store nutritionists serving as lifestyle coaches. Groups of participants are taught the skills they need to make lasting changes such as eating better, losing a modest amount of weight, being more physically active and managing stress.

PreventT2 groups meet for a year — weekly for the first six months, then once or twice a month for the second six months — to maintain healthy lifestyle changes.

“The program’s group setting provides a supportive environment with people who are facing similar challenges and trying to make the same changes,” explains Lisa Coleman, lead nutritionist with the Landover, Md.-based retailer. “Together participants celebrate their successes and find ways to overcome obstacles.”

The program is free and has enrolled over 100 customers in its first classes. Giant Food and higi, a network of retail-based self-screening health stations, have also partnered to help customers utilize the technology to track and monitor their progress between sessions with the in-store nutritionists. The stations offer a private weigh-in option, blood pressure measurements and tracking for other various health metrics.

Giant Food of Landover operates 167 supermarkets in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and the District of Columbia, and employs approximately 20,000 associates. Included within the 167 stores are 157 full-service pharmacies.