With the Canadian Diabetes Association's recent predicted rise in diabetes among our aboriginal population this year, the Portage Friendship Centre says there's not much they can do about it. It is estimated that the number of Manitobans affected by diabetes will soon reach 121,000. Executive director Shirley Bernard outlines the plight.

"I do agree that the diabetes disease is more common, and it's on the rise. More people notice that they have it. Some people aren't even diagnosed, and they don't even know they have it. I think it's because of lack funding. Everybody lost their funding for the diabetes programs. We don't have anything here to run for people to educate them or have workshops."

She says they're doing what little they can.

"We don't have anything going on. We try to incorporate healthy living and activities into some of our programs, but again, that's hard because there's no funding for it. Our parent/child program gets a small budget which barely covers the cost of the person working there -- the instructor. And it's expensive to have healthy eating."

With federal funding cut off a few years ago, the only program that dealt with the dilemma had ended.

"We would like to get funding to have a diabetes program here. In 2007, I think it was, to 2010 the centre had an A.D.I. program -- Aboriginal Diabetic Initiative. But that funding was cut, I believe, all across Canada. So, they lost that funding, and haven't had anything since."