DATE:          10/2/02
CONTACT/WRITER: Susan Wilkerson, (803) 929-6030
EDITOR:        Susan Bedingfield (864) 656-3876; sbeding@clemson.edu

Lexington Extension agents 
partner with Medical Center

	SWANSEA -- Two Clemson Extension agents from Lexington County 
have partnered with Lexington Medical Center's Health Directions 
program to help low-income patients learn about the importance of 
nutrition.
	Corinne Cates and Lisa Freedlander have developed programs for 
Swansea residents who suffer from chronic disease. 
	"Swansea has high populations of diabetics and heart disease 
patients," said Cates. "The doctors and staff refer patients to our 
classes, held on a biweekly basis. Already, we have had one patient 
able to get off his diabetic medications due to dietary and lifestyle 
changes. We hope to impact all of our patients in the same way."
     	Lifelong Improvement in Nutrition and Community (LINC) provided 
the grant that provides free basic nutrition, food safety and food 
resource management education to food stamp recipients and food stamp 
eligible populations. The program is housed in the Medical Center.
     	"Adequate nutrition for limited resource children, adolescents, 
adults and elderly is an appropriate preventive health care measure," 
according to Susan Wilkerson, LINC program coordinator for Richland and 
Lexington counties.
	Along with helping patients with chronic diseases, Cates and 
Freedlander are also working with the Lexington County School District 
4 First Steps Program to develop nutritional education for pregnant 
teenagers.
 	They are also planning a number of nutrition education courses 
for childcare providers in the area, and they work with churches and 
youth groups in Swansea, according to Wilkerson. 
	"It is so wonderful to know that you are helping people 
understand the importance of a healthy diet especially when they suffer 
from an illness where changes in diet can make such a huge difference. 
After each session, they want to know when are we coming back," said 
Freedlander.
	The LINC program will be expanding to Batesburg-Leesville in 
2003. For more information on the South Carolina food stamp program and
eligibility for LINC, visit the Clemson Extension LINC web site at
http://www.clemson.edu/public/.
                              END