Nutrition

The onset of coeliac disease, together with type 1 diabetes, influences glycaemic control, and more precisely the development of hypoglycaemia. These conditions share a similar genotype. The main problem of coeliac disease is intolerance to gliadin, a gluten protein found in cereals such as wheat, rye and barley; the only treatment is a gluten-free diet. Spomenka Ljubic and Zeljko Metelko report on the growing body of evidence linking coeliac disease and other autoimmune disorders, including type 1 diabetes, and describe recommended procedures for its diagnosis and treatment.

Breastfeeding has numerous advantages for mothers with diabetes and their babies. Nursing mothers have lower insulin requirements and better control of their blood glucose; breastfed babies may have a lower risk of developing diabetes themselves. Alison Stuebe describes these potential benefits and highlights the special needs of breastfeeding mothers with diabetes.

The USA ranks third in the global prevalence of diabetes, preceded only by India and China. About 7% of the population has diabetes. A third of the total number of people with the condition is believed to be undiagnosed and therefore not receiving treatment to reduce the risk of disabling and life-threatening diabetes complications. The economic costs of diabetes are enormous – estimated at 132 billion USD in 2002. The mission of the US National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) is to reduce diabetes-related illness and death.

The objective of holiday camps for children and adolescents with diabetes is to create an environment in which they can learn to embrace their condition and its treatment. Achieving and maintaining good blood glucose control is a key aim; the camps provide excellent opportunities for young people to learn and practise diabetes skills and become familiar with the latest techniques.

Early intervention to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes benefits people who are at high risk of developing the condition in terms of increased life expectancy and quality of life. It also benefits societies and healthcare systems in economic terms. In order to address the growing impact of type 2 diabetes, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Task Force on Prevention and Epidemiology convened a consensus workshop in 2006. Its primary goal was the prevention of type 2 diabetes in developed and developing countries.

Typical diets for people with type 2 diabetes limit carbohydrates, reduce calories to facilitate weight loss, and limit saturated fats to reduce cardiovascular risk. These dietary changes are logical and sometimes helpful. For many people, however, this sort of change leads to no more than modest weight loss and a small improvement in blood glucose control. In this article, Neal Barnard looks at evidence to suggest there might be a more effective nutritional approach to prevent or manage type 2 diabetes.

Many children around the world are starving or undernourished. In contrast, obesity and type 2 diabetes in children are major problems in many countries. These contradicting nutritional crises strongly affect the way we care for children with diabetes and their families. Recent international guidelines on the care of children with type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes recognize that effective nutritional management and the adoption of a healthy lifestyle can improve diabetes outcomes.

When IDF brings together the global diabetes community at a World Diabetes Congress, it does so with a number of key objectives, which include raising overall diabetes awareness, sharing innovative ideas and best practices, and helping to build and consolidate networks – in line with the Federation’s mission to promote care, prevention and a cure for diabetes worldwide.

In many countries, young people work effectively as advocates for a range of causes, from inner-city regeneration to anti-bullying and smoking cessation. An IDF initiative aimed to engage Youth Ambassadors in diabetes advocacy worldwide and specifically to participate at as many levels as possible in IDF’s global awareness campaign ’Unite For Diabetes’. In this article, representatives from the group describe the principles and objectives of the IDF Youth Ambassadors programme and make a call for increased involvement of young people in diabetes advocacy.

As early as 1989, the St Vincent Declaration warned Europeans of the dangers of ignoring the burgeoning diabetes epidemic. The Declaration called on governments, diabetes organizations and professional societies from countries throughout Europe to unite in efforts to tackle the growing challenge to healthcare in the region. There were high hopes among the European diabetes community that significant action would be taken. But despite the broad stakeholder support for the Declaration’s objectives, significant progress failed to materialize.