Life was simpler for Jennifer Hargis three weeks ago, before doctors at Queen of the Valley Hospital diagnosed her with Type 2 diabetes. Hargis’ feelings of fatigue and numbness prompted her to get checked out, she said.

After hearing her diagnosis, Hargis took a proactive approach to diabetes. She enrolled in a Diabetes Wellness Program operated out of the hospital’s Wellness Center and was among one of the 150 or more individuals who were at Queen of the Valley’s 3rd Annual Diabetes and Pre-Diabetes Health Fair held at the center’s parking lot.

“I’m a little shaky about it (the diagnosis),” she said.

A plethora of diabetes experts, vendors and pharmaceutical representatives were at the event to give Hargis and the others a better understanding of the disease and how to treat it.

“Diabetes is an epidemic (and) over 60 million people have diabetes or pre-diabetes,” said Nita Durham, Diabetes Wellness Program coordinator and event organizer. “There are like six million people out there who don’t know they have diabetes.”

Durham said that November is Diabetes Awareness Month and the fair was designed to inform diabetes patients how to take better manage their disease and to teach methods of avoiding diabetes.

“Diabetes is a disease in which the body doesn’t produce or properly use insulin,” according to the American Diabetes Association’s web site. “Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. The cause of diabetes continues to be a mystery, although both genetics and environmental factors such as obesity and lack of exercise appear to play roles.”

Some of the symptoms include fatigue, blurry vision, extreme hunger and unusual weight loss. Although the disease can prove to be fatal if gone untreated, it’s a manageable disease, experts say.

Ann Peters, director of University of Southern California Clinical Diabetes Programs, said that diet is one of the biggest factors when it come to diabetes.

“What people need to do (to avoid diabetes) is eat less refined food,” she said.

But she said that’s a challenge for most people because of the easy access to fast food, sweets and other unhealthy foods as well as meal portion sizes in Western culture. Diabetes patients have to think about everything they eat, she said, and programs such as the Queen’s Diabetes Wellness Program teach people how to do that. Exercise is also an important factor in diabetes prevention and control, she said. More exercise means less chance of getting diabetes.

Peters spoke to the crowd about Exubera, a form of insulin that can be inhaled, and Byetta, a drug derived from Gila monster saliva that helps fulfill a sense of satiety in diabetes patients. Cooking is an important skills for diabetes patients to have, Durham said.

To help them make quick, easy and healthy meals Claudia Sansone — of Napa-based StoneFly Vineyards — taught participants how to make StoneFly Gazpacho, a chilled Spanish soup. Free glucose screenings added to the anti-diabetes vibe of the event.

What are the different types of diabetes?

Type 1 diabetes

Results from the body's failure to produce insulin, the hormone that "unlocks" the cells of the body, allowing glucose to enter and fuel them. It is estimated that 5-10% of Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 1 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes

Results from insulin resistance combined with relative insulin deficiency. Most Americans who are diagnosed with diabetes have type 2 diabetes.

Gestational diabetes

Gestational diabetes affects about 4% of all pregnant women — about 135,000 cases in the United States each year.

Pre-diabetes

Pre-diabetes is a condition that occurs when a person's blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. There are 54 million Americans who have pre-diabetes, in addition to the 20.8 million with diabetes.

Source: American Diabetes Association