Hundreds of black men recently discovered they could get more than a lining or a fresh fade at their local barbershops. They were offered diabetes testing, too.
A new study offered customers diabetes screenings at eight New York City barbershops. Among those who took the test, 10 percent learned they had average blood sugar levels that indicated type 2 diabetes. And almost 30% appeared to have prediabetes.
Why The Barbershop?
“For a long time, barbershops have been a place of trust, especially for black people. Because we had the barbers on board with us, people trusted us. Barbers are often important health advocates,” said the study’s senior author, Dr. David Lee. He’s an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the NYU School of Medicine.
Lee and his colleagues said it’s important to reach out to black men in this way because their diabetes diagnosis is often