More than fifty pilgrims participating in the 'Diabetes to Santiago' initiative, half of them from the Netherlands, stopped today at the City Council of Ponferrada to promote the practice of sports and the maintenance of healthy lifestyle habitsAmong the people affected by the disorder, suffering more than five million Spaniards.
The manager of the Diabetes Foundation, Ana Mateo, said the project aims to "sensitize the population about the disease.""We try to demonstrate that there are no limits or barriers in a life with diabetes, which can be made a normal life and practice sports," he explained.
In that sense, he recalled that the incidence of diabetes, which he described as "pandemic", will be even greater in the coming years and that the challenge is that patients can control their health, through life habitshealthy and exercise.
Along the same lines, the president of the Bierzo Diabetics Association (ADEBI), Pedro Mora, valued the fact that "projects like this improve the quality of life of patients and are a way to change the perception of diabetes".In this regard, Mora trusted that the initiative be repeated in the coming years with the participation of groups from other provinces.
In the first edition of this march, which started on Sunday in Astorga, 16 Bercian patients, eight Navarrese and a Cordoba participate.In addition, 24 Dutch complete the expedition, thanks to the participation in the same of the Bas Van de Goor Foundation, created by a former Porfe Festioner of Volleyball diagnosed with diabetes.Van de Goor himself, who has been working to improve the life of diabetics through sport for ten years, is one of the project participants."I discovered that sport helps a lot to the people suffering from the disorder," explained the Dutchman, who cited the example of Nacho Fernández, a Real Madrid player, as a "source of inspiration.""People like him show that having diabetes is not an impediment," said Van de Goor.
In that sense, the former Dutch deportist advanced that the foundation he directs marks the objective of "organizing more sports activities to show people with diabetes that there is no problem for practicing sports."In this regard, he valued the help of doctors, especially of the endocrinologist of the Bierzo Alberto Díez hospital, who participates in the march and has supervised the training of the attendees."We want to show patients what they are capable of," Van de Goor concluded.
Arrival to Santiago
The participants in the route face their third day of march, with three others ahead.This afternoon they will visit the Castle of the Templars of Ponferrada and tomorrow they will be received at the City of Villafranca del Bierzo.The first phase of the route will be completed on Thursday, with the ascent to the port of O Cebrerio, from where they will get on a bus that will transport them to Mount Do Gozo, a few six kilometers from the Galician capital.
Already on Friday, they will culminate the last stage, from Monte do Gozo to the Plaza del Obradoiro in Santiago de Compostela.Upon arrival, they are scheduled to attend the traditional Pilgrim Mass and the commemorative act, with balloons, which will take place in this place to celebrate the end of a challenge, which will have led them to complete more than 120 kilometers on foot on foot.
The challenge 'walks through diabetes to Santiago' is a sports and solidarity project promoted by the Diabetes Foundation and the Bas Van de Goor Foundation, with the support of the company Novo Nordisk and the Bierzo-Adebi Diabetics Association.The initiative aims to change the mentality of people with diabetes instilling in them the need to incorporate physical activity into their daily routine and improve their habitsFood