CONCLUSIONS Despite a compelling theoretical base , research ers have only minimally studied the value of interventions targeting patients ' social networks on diabetes care .
OBJECTIVES In the care of patients with type 2 diabetes , self-management is emphasised and studied while theory and observations suggest that patients also benefit from social support .
We sought to assess the effect of social network interventions on social support , glycaemic control and quality of life in patients with type 2 diabetes .
Dyadic collaboration in shared health behavior change: the effects of a randomized trial to test a lifestyle intervention for high-risk Latinas.
OBJECTIVE This study sought to evaluate the feasibility of a pilot , dyad-based lifestyle intervention , the Unidas por la Vida program , for improving weight loss and dietary intake among high-risk Mexican American mothers who have Type 2 diabetes and their overweight/obese adult daughters . METHOD Mother-daughter dyads ( N = 89 ) were recruited from two federally qualified health centers and r and omly assigned to either the Unidas intervention or to the control condition . The 16-week Unidas intervention consisted of the following : ( a ) four group meetings , ( b ) eight home visits , and ( c ) booster telephone calls by a lifestyle community coach . The control condition consisted of educational material s mailed to participants ' homes . Participants completed surveys at T1 ( baseline ) and T2 ( 16 weeks ) that assessed various demographic , social network involvement , and dietary variables . RESULTS Unidas participants lost significantly more weight at T2 ( p < .003 ) compared with the control participants . Furthermore , intervention participants also were more likely to be eating foods with lower glycemic load ( p < .001 ) and less saturated fat ( p = .004 ) at T2 . Unidas participants also reported a significant increase in health-related social support and social control ( persuasion control only ) and a decrease in undermining . CONCLUSIONS The Unidas program promoted weight loss and improved dietary intake , as well as changes in diet-related involvement of participants ' social networks . The results from this study demonstrate that interventions that draw upon multiple people who share a health-risk have the potential to foster significant changes in lifestyle behaviors and in social network members ' health-related involvement . Future research that builds on these findings is needed to eluci date the specific dyadic and social network processes that may drive health behavior change
CONCLUSIONS Despite a compelling theoretical base , research ers have only minimally studied the value of interventions targeting patients ' social networks on diabetes care .
OBJECTIVES In the care of patients with type 2 diabetes , self-management is emphasised and studied while theory and observations suggest that patients also benefit from social support .
We sought to assess the effect of social network interventions on social support , glycaemic control and quality of life in patients with type 2 diabetes .