The goal of the Diabetes Research Center is to foster and support both basic and clinical research in diabetes and related metabolic disorders with the ultimate purpose of translating findings into opportunities to prevent these diseases and to improve clinical care and outcomes.

The Amputation Reduction and Compassion Act would raise awareness of diabetes and its symptoms and promote early detection with the goal of reducing limb loss and other complications. “We’d like to get to a point where amputation was not a consideration for a patient,” says Dr. Lee Kirksey, a vascular surgeon who helped draft the bill.

Full Story: Spectrum News (11/23)  

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said all adults should get COVID-19 booster shots six months after receiving their second dose of Moderna or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine or two months after getting the Johnson & Johnson vaccine amid rising concern over the new Omicron variant. Walensky also urged 47 million US adults who have not been vaccinated to do so “because strong immunity will likely prevent serious illness.”

 Full Story: CNN(11/29),  CNBC (11/29)  

Children of parents with type 2 diabetes reported increased symptoms of depression, anxiety, uncurbed eating habits and emotional eating than children of parents without type 2 diabetes. The study, published in Pediatric Diabetes, collected data from 932 youths.

Full Story: Medical Dialogues (11/28)  

Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey showed the obesity rate for adults ages 18 to 25 increased from 6.2% in 1976 to 1980 to 32.7% in 2017 to 2018, according to a research letter published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The number of emerging adults with a normal BMI decreased from 68.7% to 37.5% during the time period.

 Full Story: Healio (free registration) (11/23)  

A study in JAMA Pediatrics found that children ages 7 to 13 who participated in an intervention targeting diet, physical activity and environment had decreases in body mass index, compared with a control group that did not participate in the program and had increases in BMI. The intervention group also had a greater reduction in the prevalence of obesity and improved dietary, sedentary, and physical activity behaviors and obesity-related knowledge.

 Full Story: Medical Dialogues (11/27)  

A study in The American Journal of Cardiology found that patients with obesity who maintained weight loss for two years had a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and hypertension, compared with those who maintained their weight from baseline and those who initially lost weight but regained after two years. The findings, based on data from 63,567 patients, also showed that among those with sustained weight loss, those who shed more pounds had a longer time developing type 2 diabetes and hypertension, compared with those who shed fewer pounds.

 Full Story: Medical Dialogues (10/31)  

Patients who underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass had a greater reduction in A1C and microalbuminuria levels, compared with empagliflozin and liraglutide treatment, according to a study in Diabetes Care. Patients who had surgery also saw a reduction in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, researchers said, but not in systolic blood pressure.

Full Story: Medical Dialogues (10/28)  

A study in Alzheimer’s & Dementia found that type 2 diabetes alone did not raise the risk of cognitive impairment or affect the progression of cognitive impairment to full dementia. However, older adults with poorly controlled diabetes had a twofold greater risk of developing preclinical dementia than those without diabetes, and those who already had cognitive impairment with poorly controlled diabetes had a threefold greater risk of developing full dementia.

 Full Story: McKnight’s Long-Term Care News (10/12)  

The FDA has released new guidelines asking chain restaurants, food manufacturers and foodservice operators to voluntarily reduce sodium levels in 163 categories of the most-consumed processed, packaged and prepared foods. The move is to help reduce average American sodium intake by 12% over the next two and a half years, as well as reduce the rate of heart disease in the country, said Acting FDA Commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock.

Full Story: Reuters (10/13),  NBC News (10/13)  

The US Preventive Services Task Force released draft guidance noting that the risks of low-dose daily aspirin to prevent a first heart attack or stroke among adults ages 60 and older outweigh the benefits, given the risk of internal bleeding associated with regular aspirin use. All adults, regardless of age, should consult with their doctor about whether to stop or start taking aspirin, task force member Dr. John Wong said.

 Full Story: Reuters(10/12),  The Associated Press (10/12)