Although much of the illness and death from diabetes can be decreased by aggressive treatment with diet, physical activity and new medicines that help people with diabetes achieve good glucose control, current studies show there is still a wide gap between the most current and most desired diabetes care and practices. The prevalence of diabetes is rising, as the U.S. population ages, and as more Americans become obese. Obesity is a risk factor for Type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes also affects minority populations disproportionately.
In 1998, the NDEP will launch a public awareness campaign to alert the general public, patients, health care providers, as well as payers and purchasers of health care and policy makers of the seriousness and commonness of diabetes. The NDEP is actively seeking partner organizations interested in diabetes and the health of their members. The American Diabetes Association, the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International, the American Association of Diabetes Educators, and the American Dietetic Association have already signed on. With these partners, the NDEP will develop and disseminate a consistent set of diabetes messages, promote a health care team approach to diabetes care, and coordinate and share activities for diabetes care among its members. During the past year and a half, the NDEP held a series of planning meetings with over 100 public and private organizations.