The rate of new cases of type 2 diabetes has nearly doubled in the last 10 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). New diagnoses of type 2 diabetes rose from 4.8 per 1,000 people from 1995 to 1997 to 9.1 per 1,000 people from 2005 to 2007. The study, published in the October 31 issue of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, used CDC’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to collect data on new diabetes cases in 33 states that reported data for both time periods.

This first of its kind, state-by-state breakdown of data suggests that interventions to promote weight loss and increased physical activity for people at risk for diabetes are needed to reduce the incidence of diabetes. The highest numbers of new type 2 diabetes cases, according to the data, were in southern states – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia – and mirror the increase in obesity rates, a leading cause of type 2 diabetes. Minnesota had the fewest number of new cases, with 5 per 1,000 people and Puerto Rico had the largest number of new cases with 12.8 per 1,000 people.

NDEP’s fact sheets now reflect the most recent diabetes statistics, including prevalence rates for high-risk groups such as African Americans*, Hispanics/Latinos*, American Indians and Alaska Natives*, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders*, and a new fact sheet for older adults*. To download additional diabetes fact sheets, visit NDEP’s campaign tools webpage.

NDEP is currently promoting a new feature article entitled “People with Diabetes: Eating Right When Money’s Tight”* to general print and online publications. The article highlights ways people with diabetes can make healthy food choices without spending a lot of time or money by preparing healthy meals and snacks at home. Also included is a low-fat, low-calorie recipe for Beef and Bean Chili* for people with diabetes and their families.

To learn more about managing diabetes, check out NDEP’s resources for people with diabetes and their families.

In January, NDEP will distribute a new feature article entitled “Five Ways Older Adults Can Be More Physically Active”* to older adult print and online publications highlighting five tips to help older adults be more physically active to lower their risk for type 2 diabetes. For more tips on preventing type 2 diabetes in older adults, read NDEP’s It’s Not Too Late to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes. Take Your First Step Today. tip sheet.

In February, NDEP will distribute a new feature article to general print and online publications dispelling five common diabetes myths for people living with the disease and their families. For more tips on staying healthy and managing diabetes, read NDEP’s Tips to Help You Stay Healthy tip sheet*.

In each issue of NEWS & NOTES look for NDEP promotional tools that are ready for you to personalize, customize, and distribute. For example, use our printer-ready public service announcements to make diabetes posters for upcoming events, health fairs, or at your office. Or use our customizable campaign tools to promote diabetes awareness in your community:

• Take our feature articles, press releases, and public service announcements, and add your organization’s logo*.
• Add your organization’s name and mission and talk about how you and NDEP are working together.
• Add your contact information.
• Then submit the ad and/or article to your local paper.

By using our promotional tools, everybody wins. Your community newspaper receives a story with important health information for its readers, your organization receives good publicity, and you help NDEP continue to be the nation’s No. 1 resource for free information and materials on diabetes control and prevention. Each issue of NEWS & NOTES features tools that tie into the following month’s promotions and can help us promote NDEP together.

Over the past year, NDEP has developed or revised numerous free tools and resources for our partners to use within their communities and professional fields. Some of these resources include:

• 2008 Diabetes Numbers At-a-Glance* - Designed for health care professionals, this updated reference card is a convenient, pocket-sized guide to help diagnose and treat pre-diabetes and diabetes. Health care professionals can use the card and easily find recommendations from the American Diabetes Association for diagnosing and managing patients with diabetes. The guide also provides treatment goals by giving a range of healthy blood glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol numbers for patients with diabetes, as well as a diabetes management schedule.
• 4 Pasos para controlar la diabetes de por vida – An easy-to-read resource for people with diabetes, this booklet is the Spanish version of the 4 Steps to Control Your Diabetes. For Life. brochure and helps people with diabetes understand vital self-care principles. Written for newly diagnosed people with diabetes as well as those living with diabetes for years, the four steps empower them to be active partners in their own care, take steps to stay healthy, and to understand, monitor, and manage their diabetes.
• Tips to Help You Stay Healthy* - This tip sheet has been reformatted to serve as a companion piece to the 4 Steps to Control Your Diabetes. For Life. brochure and provides a three-part action plan for managing diabetes. It encourages people with diabetes to know their A1C, blood pressure, and cholesterol, and manage their diabetes to reach their target numbers.
• Two Reasons I Find Time to Prevent Diabetes: My Future and Theirs* - Part of the Small Steps. Big Rewards. Prevent Type 2 Diabetes. campaign, the tip sheet includes tips to help Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders at risk for type 2 diabetes move more and eat less to lose weight and lower their risk for diabetes. Revisions include the addition of tips for making healthy food choices and being physically active and the definition of “pre-diabetes.” A number of new items were also added to the risk assessment checklist on the back of the tip sheet.
• Power to Prevent: A Family Lifestyle Approach to Diabetes Prevention* - This modular curriculum can be used by small groups to learn how to make healthy lifestyle changes around food and physical activity to prevent and manage diabetes. The accompanying CD-ROM has files for NDEP materials used in conjunction with the curriculum.

Coming Soon! Stay tuned for the following new and updated NDEP resources:

• Mas que comida, es vida recipe and meal planner
• Road to Health/El camino hacia la buena salud toolkit
• Capacity Building for Diabetes Outreach: A Comprehensive Toolkit for Organizations Serving Asian and Pacific Islander Communities

These resources are just a fraction of the many free materials created, revised, and being developed to help partners promote NDEP’s diabetes prevention and control messages. We want to thank you for using these resources to promote diabetes management and prevention among those with diabetes, at risk for the disease, and health care professionals. In the coming year, please visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org and continue to utilize NDEP’s tools.

For the latest developments on new and updated resources, check the “What’s New?” section of the NDEP website regularly.

Also remember that many NDEP materials can be ordered in quantities as large as 200 copies, and the first 25 copies of most materials are free. NDEP’s Publications Catalog addresses the quantity available for each NDEP material. Download or order online by visiting NDEP’s online Publications Catalog, also available in Spanish. To order by phone, English and Spanish-speaking consumers can call 1-888-693-NDEP (6337); TTY: 1-866-569-1162. To order printer-ready CDs for a specific NDEP material, call the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse at 1-800-860-8747. Please allow four to six weeks for delivery.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu vaccination every year – especially for people with diabetes. Flu vaccination can continue into December and even later. Anyone six months of age and older who has diabetes - as well as their close contacts - should receive an annual flu vaccination, since the vaccine prevents serious illness and complications. Health care professionals should also get immunized against the flu annually to help prevent illness in themselves and to reduce the risk of transmitting the flu to their patients, many of whom are within a high-risk category.

For the 2008-2009 flu season, CDC’s flu campaign materials - available in black and white, color, English, and Spanish - can be downloaded free from its website (no printed versions are available).

NDEP encourages you to plan flu vaccination activities and promotions with health care professionals, officials, and health organizations. You can also partner with local businesses, faith-based organizations, and community groups. Remember to emphasize that for a person with diabetes, getting a flu shot is essential and could save their life.

For more flu references and resources or to learn more about the importance of getting a flu vaccination for people with diabetes, visit CDC’s website.