Get Ready To Vote: Washington Co. Students Invited To 1st Annual Caucus Training

The Washington County Republican Party, in conjunction with the Washington County Democratic Party are pleased to announce an exciting opportunity for all High School Seniors and Juniors - the First Annual Caucus Training.

We train our teens to drive before putting them behind the wheel of a car, why don’t we show them how the caucus system works in Utah before telling them to go vote?

The Washington County Republicans and Democrats are working together to teach young soon-to-be-voters how the Caucus system works here in Utah.

This simulation will be held Jan. 6, from 8 a.m. - noon at Dixie and Enterprise High Schools. Breakfast, lunch and power snacks will be provided.

There is no charge to attend -- Just come, learn, eat and win prizes.

Registrants will also have the opportunity to attend a Day at the Capitol with a Southern Utah Representative!

Attendees will learn:

• The use of party platforms
• The purpose of neighborhood caucus meetings
• What happens at party conventions
• How a candidate gets their name on the general election ballot

Attendees will receive a certificate of completion signed by Republican and Democrat party chairs, the Mayor and City Council.

Don’t miss out! Registration has been extended until December 31, 2023. Register your student today! Register at https://tinyurl.com/caucusbootcamp.

If you have any questions, or would like more information, email the Caucus Training Chair for more information: caucusbootcamp@gmail.com.

This year will feature the presidential election as well as several key political office elections, including Senate and House of Representative seats for both the state and national offices.

How We Can Stop This New Epidemic: Type 2 Diabetes

Type 1 diabetes used to be rare ... and it still is.

But Type 2 diabetes, the same blood-sugar disease but with a different cause, is not rare,

In fact, there's a good chance you know someone with Type 2 diabetes and an even better chance that you or someone you love has pre-diabetes and doesn't even know it.

You've probably heard the stories about how Sir. Frederik Banting, a research scientist, discovered insulin and the potential use it had for treating diabetes, how he could have been a millionaire, but flatly refused to patent the cure. His desire was for insulin to be cheap or free for all who suffered from diabetes.

He was later awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts.

He passed away more than 80 years ago and doubtfully never could have seen this modern epidemic of Type 2 diabetes brought on by obesity and sugar consumption. Here are some staggering numbers (from diabetesresearch.org):

• 37.3 million people, or 11.3% of the U.S. population, have diabetes. An estimated 28.7 million people had diagnosed diabetes. Approximately 8.6 million people have diabetes but have not yet been diagnosed.
• 26.4 million people aged 65 years or older (48.8%) have prediabetes.
• Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults aged 18–64 years.
• As many as 80 percent of people who have prediabetes don't know they have it.

Perhaps the best news about prediabetes is it's easily detectable with a simple blood test.

The other good news is that you can actually prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes before it arrives by simply getting in better shape.

"Truthfully, if you are prediabetic and lose just 5- to 7-percent of your body weight, you can stop Type 2 diabetes before it ever arrives," said SWUPHD director Dr. David Blodgett.

That means a person weighing 200 pounds needs to lose just 10 pounds or so to prevent this crippling infirmity.

So that's it, we can find out if we're getting diabetes with an easy test and we can stop it in its tracks with a little bit of diet and exercise.

The link to the prediabetes screening test on the SWUhealth.org website is here.

Some other scary diabetes facts:

• Diabetes was the seventh leading cause of death in the United States in 2017 based on the 83,564 death certificates in which diabetes was listed as the underlying cause of death.
• Diabetes was listed as the underlying or contributing cause of death on 270,702 death certificates in 2017.
• In 2017, the total estimated cost of diagnosed diabetes in the U.S. was $327 billion.
• Without insulin, the body’s cells would be starved, causing dehydration and destruction of body tissue.
• Many people with type 2 diabetes can control their blood glucose by following a healthy meal plan and a program of regular physical activity, losing excess weight, and taking medications.

Nartional Diabetes Foundation website