This is an excerpt from Alabama Extension Human Sciences 2025 Program Guide, FCS-2500. Find all sections of the publication at www.aces.edu. Contact your county Extension office for more information on how to participate in local programs or email aceshse@auburn.edu.

Prevention and Management of Chronic Disease

The following are Extension programs related to the prevention and management of chronic disease:

Escape Vapes is a suite of programs for teens, parents, and adults and is designed to educate, prevent, and reduce the use of electronic cigarettes. The four-program offerings increase knowledge about the health risks of vaping and increase users’ confidence and ability to abstain. Programs available are (1) Escape Vapes: A Prevention Program, (2) Escape Vapes: Empowering Adults, (3) Escape Vapes: Healthy Futures, an Alternative to Suspension, and (4) NOT on Tobacco (N-O-T), a smoking cessation program.

Health Extension for Diabetes is an education and support program that connects participants to clinical resources through partnerships with Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialists. Through eight sessions, participants can improve their knowledge of diabetes, behaviors associated with diabetes management, and diabetes-related health outcomes.

Lifestyles for Cancer Prevention consists of two lessons to help participants understand and practice lifestyle guidelines for cancer prevention. Lessons emphasize nutrition recommendations to reduce cancer risk and the importance of screening for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer.

Master of Memory is a six-lesson series that encourages participants to recognize how they can impact and evaluate their memory function and find ways that may help address some of those factors. Participants can increase their confidence and readiness to take steps to improve memory functioning.

Color Me Healthy is an exciting media of color, music, and exploration of the senses to teach children to make wise food choices and that physical activity can be fun. The education stimulates all senses of young children ages 4 and 5: touch, smell, sight, sound, and taste. This high-energy education is a favorite of young children.

Right Bite: Healthy Eating with Diabetes is a multilesson program to help participants learn meal planning and food preparation methods to reduce calories, control carbohydrates, modify fat, and increase fiber so those affected by diabetes can manage their blood glucose and blood pressure.

Know Diabetes by Heart is a one-session program that helps people understand the link between diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. It provides information on what diabetes is, its effect on the cardiovascular system, and questions to ask a doctor during an exam. It also introduces lifestyle changes that can help to reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. Know Diabetes by Heart could be used to recruit participants for multiseries programs such as Right Bite: Healthy Eating with Diabetes or Health Extension for Diabetes.

Maternal, Infant, and Child Health

The following are Extension programs related to maternal, infant, and child health:

Breastfeeding Education is an eight-lesson program designed for pregnant and early postpartum women and individuals in their support system. Lessons cover health during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and starting babies on solid foods. The sessions are interactive and include hands-on activities.

Safe Sleep Initiative is a project in collaboration with the Children’s Hospital of Alabama to reduce the number of sleep-related infant deaths in the state. Through a single lesson, caregivers learn the importance of safe sleep, particularly the importance of babies sleeping alone, on their back, and in a crib.