Tag Archives: Health

City Council health chair announces citywide diabetes plan

Diabetes News


City Council Committee on Health chair Lynn Schulman, a Queens Democrat, announced the Council will be proposing a citywide diabetes reduction plan this year.

“It’s something that the city really hasn’t focused on,” Schulman said. “We need to go into communities with culturally competent education materials.”

The councilmember said the plan will be based on the 90-90-90 strategy developed by the United Nations to tackle the AIDS epidemic. Schulman added she has been in conversation with city Health Comissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan about her proposal.

Schulman also discussed the City Council’s health goals in 2023 and her views on how the city should take on unlicensed cannabis shops.



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Health officials host diabetes screenings, vaccination clinic at Acrisure Stadium

Diabetes News


PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Healthy players on the field and healthy fans in the stands.

The Steelers teamed up with area health officials to make sure the black-and-gold nation is protected against all illnesses, including diabetes.

As quickly as you can say “Go Steelers,” fans at today’s game can be screened for diabetes.

“It’s simple. It’s a finger stick,” said Nick Vizzoca, president of the Center for Healthcare Solutions. “We check their A1C levels, right on the spot. We give them the information and they’re good to go.”

So, before focusing on T.J. Watt’s return to the turf or Kenny Pickett’s ongoing quest for his first NFL win, the Healthcare Council of Western Pennsylvania is hoping people take a second to focus on their health.

“They feel good, and a lot of people with diabetes do feel good. And don’t realize that they have it,” Vizzoca added.

In Pennsylvania alone, experts estimate about 300,000 people have the disease and don’t even know it.

To show you just how easy screening is, KDKA’s very own Chris DeRose got a quick check-up.

First, the paperwork.

“I feel like I’m about to get my nails done,” said DeRose.

Then the prick.

“That wasn’t too bad.”

Minutes later, the results.

“82 is a really good number! So, you have a low risk for diabetes!”

“That’s awesome!”

“Hopefully, we don’t find anybody with diabetes, but if somebody does, we’ll take the action to make sure they get the care they need,” said Vizzoca.

Giant Eagle pharmacists were also on-hand before the game to administer flu and covid-19 shots.



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Diabetes indicators improve with use of health incentives, CDC study finds –

Diabetes News


Incentivizing patients to follow a lifestyle modification program helps them improve across a range of diabetes-related health measures, a new meta-analysis has found.

Investigators performed what they said is the first systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the effect of incentives on diabetes-related health indicators when patients participate in lifestyle modification programs. 

The researchers analyzed data from 19 randomized controlled trials. Relative to a control group, the incentive group had significant reductions in weight, and both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. One study found a significant reduction in hemoglobin A1c. A reduction in cholesterol level was also noted but was not significant. 

Six incentive-related domains were also studied. These included type of incentive, monetary value, recipient of the incentive (such as individuals, groups or a combination of both), frequency of incentives, certainty of incentive attainment and schedule (how the amount of the incentive was provided to recipients during the study period). 

Incentive effects

When incentives were provided, the meta-analysis showed patients experienced a nearly 2 kg greater weight loss and a significant reduction in BMI compared to no incentive, reported the authors, including researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

“This finding has important health implications considering that a large study reported a 16% reduction in diabetes risk for every kilogram of weight lost, and others have shown that weight loss in conjunction with a lifestyle modification program can lower the risk for cardiovascular disease,” they wrote.

Incentives were also shown to be effective for reducing systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Those findings suggest a benefit for programs that seek to help participants achieve ideal blood pressure goals, such as less than 140/90 mm Hg, the authors said. This would be especially helpful for programs associated with chronic disease prevention and management, they added. 

Incentive type

Type of incentive did not appear to have an outsized effect on the positive results. “Therefore, it seems reasonable for lifestyle modification programs to use a variety of incentive domain subgroups,” the authors concluded.

Adults aged 65 years and older make up approximately 40% of the adult diabetic population, according to federal data from 2018. In nursing homes, the prevalence of diabetes is estimated to range from 25% to 34%. 

The current study was published in the CDC’s journal Preventing Chronic Diseases.

Related articles:

NIH: Two drugs most effective in treating type 2 diabetes

Overtreated diabetes raises hypoglycemia risk in nursing homes, investigators say

Contested insulin therapy remains common in nursing homes: study



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Health Foundation gives 10 grants under Diabetes Initiative

Diabetes News


EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – The Paso del Norte Health Foundation recently awarded 10 grants totaling more than $1 million under the Disease Prevention & Management priority area and Diabetes initiative.

The Health Foundation works in partnership with organizations to implement initiatives and programs for diabetes prevention, early detection, and management in the region.

The following are those awarded:

  • Centro Familiar para la Integracion y Crecimiento, A.C. – $41,472.00 Aprende a cuidar de ti – To provide a diabetes education pilot program to 80 people in Ciudad Juárez, MX.
  • El Paso Diabetes Association, Inc. – $209,774.40 Diabetes Education – To offer Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support plus two kids camps in El Paso, TX.
  • New Mexico State University Foundation, Inc. – $25,811.13 On the Road to Living Well with Diabetes – Otero – To offer the On the Road to Living Well with Diabetes program to 100 residents of Alamogordo, Chaparral, Tularosa, Dona Ana County, and other Southern New Mexico communities.
  • New Mexico State University Foundation, Inc. – $8,800.00 One-hour diabetes literacy presentations – To plan instructional media to support diabetes awareness across the Paso del Norte region.
  • Paso del Norte Health Information Exchange – PHIX – $225,750.00 Diabetes Prevention and Management: Data and Referrals – To increase utilization of a closed-loop referral system for diabetes related services and lead the diabetes data workgroups in El Paso, TX.
  • Project Vida Health Center – $49,720.00 Diabetes Prevention Program – To provide a Diabetes Prevention Program to 60 people in El Paso, TX.
  • Texas A&M University – $218,784.50 Project VyBE – To train 30 Community Health Workers as diabetes education coaches and have a minimum of 200 individuals complete diabetes education in El Paso County, TX.
  • Texas Tech Foundation, Inc. – $114,944.00 Diabetes and the Dentist: Early Diabetes Detection, Education and Referral – To develop and pilot test a diabetes screening and referral program at the Texas Tech Dental Clinic in El Paso, TX.
  • The University of Texas at El Paso – $125,147.00 UTEP BBRC Community Health Workers led diabetes intervention capacity building – To train 30 Community Health Workers to deliver the five-week intervention, “On the Road with Diabetes” to 300 participants in El Paso County, TX.
  • The University of Texas at El Paso – $33,790.00 Diabetes Prevention Education Program for Community Outreach – To develop a one-hour diabetes awareness program, prepare at least 20 public health students to deliver, the program, and offer the program at least 60 times to groups in El Paso, TX.

November is National Diabetes Month. Diabetes is a disease that occurs in adults and youth when the blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. This disease can damage the eyes, kidneys, nerves and heart, and is linked to some types of cancers.

According to the El Paso Center for Diabetes, an estimated 9.4 percent of the U.S. population has diabetes, making it the seventh leading cause of death. In El Paso, the prevalence of diabetes outpaces the national numbers, with 13.9 percent of adults, or about 94,000 El Pasoans, living with diabetes.



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