I’ve always felt like an outsider.  As a child I was too shy to make friends easily.  I was a tiny, quiet girl with a really screwed up family situation.  I didn’t know anyone like me.  No one at all.  And there’s one other thing that’s important to mention.  I’m Jewish, and I grew up in Texas, a place without a lot of Jews.  Being part of a minority often goes along with feeling like an outsider.  It’s inevitable.  When I was diagnosed with diabetes and became involved in diabetes...

“Today 366 million people have diabetes. At a conservative estimate there must then be 1 billion people who either have diabetes or live with someone who does,” said Professor Jean Claude Mbanya, President of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). Mbanya made his proclamation at the opening ceremony of the IDF World Congress. Almost 15,000 participants have descended upon Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and where I am now, for the Congress. Researchers, scientists, heads of state, diabetes organizations,...

Did the U.N. summit on non-communicable diseases count? Ann Keeling, Chair of the NCD Alliance and CEO of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), says yes. “We’ve come out of this,” says Keeling, “with 193 governments committing to create change. Now we have to hold their feet to the fire.” She also stated that, “The private food industry was pushing back, we’re already in a train wreck.” And that, “There aren’t many time-bound commitments in the new declaration.” Hope...

International progress on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and chronic respiratory disease, is at grave risk, because of recent efforts by some member states to postpone and weaken United Nations negotiations, an alliance of civil society organisations warned today. In a letter addressed to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the NCD Alliance, a coalition of over 2,000 organisations from over 170 countries focusing on NCDs, attacked the state of negotiations towards the first-ever UN...

  Dear Readers, I write about diabetes almost every day.  I write to inform you about the latest diabetes news, diabetes technology, and diabetes research.  When I share my personal stories about living with diabetes, I try to weave in humor.  I want to make you smile so that you remember that we can live well and be happy despite diabetes.  But the truth is that diabetes is not a laughing matter.  Diabetes is a serious, life-threatening illness that affects over 200 million people around the world.  There is nothing funny...

The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) today launched the first ever Charter setting out the fundamental rights of more than 300 million people living with diabetes. The landmark document places the rights of people with diabetes, their parents and carers into three focus areas; the rights to care; information and education and social justice, whilst at the same time acknowledging the responsibilities held by people with diabetes. Publication of the International Charter of Rights and Responsibilities of People with Diabetes...

An International Diabetes Federation (IDF) paper calls for bariatric surgery to be considered earlier in the treatment of eligible type 2 diabetes patients, to help stem the serious complications that can result from diabetes. The position paper was presented to leading experts at the 2nd World Congress on Interventional Therapies for Type 2 Diabetes in New York on 28 March. The statement was written by experts in diabetes and bariatric surgery and contains a series of recommendations on the use of weight loss surgery as...

The situation in Haiti continues to be dire, and there are  hundreds of thousands of diabetics in Haiti who need help.  The Haitian Foundation for Diabetes and Cardiovascular Diseases is working to get supplies and medicine to those in need.  You can make a donation through the IDF Diabetes Trust Fund for Haiti.  The Daily Beast has complied a list of the most effective NGOs assisting in Haiti, including Doctors Without Borders (which received a $1 million donation from Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt), and Partners in Health.

The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) announced that on January 15 2010, it will launch D-START (Diabetes, Supporting Translational Research and Twinning), an initiative that aims to support the development of innovative projects in low and middle- income countries. D-START will bring together world experts in diabetes and organizations with limited access to funding opportunities. Partnership, transfer of knowledge and sustainability will be the key goals of this new initiative and will undoubtedly contribute to its success. D-START...

An International Diabetes Federation (IDF) press release announced the opening of an International Conference on Diabetes & Associated Diseases in the Republic of Mauritius, in collaboration with the World Health Organization Afro Region and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) yesterday. Health ministers from 46 African countries and representatives from WHO and the IDF arrived in Port Louis to highlight their concern about the rapid growth of the diabetes epidemic throughout Africa. According to the IDF Diabetes Atlas...