The National Institutes of Health (NIH) kicked off a new consumer campaign last week that aims to educate patients and health care providers alike on the importance of managing diabetes through controlling not just blood glucose levels but also blood pressure and cholesterol levels to reduce the risk of heart disease. Diabetics have a much greater risk of heart disease, including heart attack and stroke, than non-diabetics, and cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death for people with diabetes.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), including the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at NIH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the American Diabetes Association (ADA) are working together on this initiative. Highlights of the campaign include:

• making November National Diabetes Month 
• developing the ABC’s of diabetes: A stands for A1C (also known as “hemoglobin A1c,” a measure of average blood glucose over the previous three months); B stands for blood pressure; and C stands for cholesterol (LDL)
• recommending targets: A1C: less than 7%, to be checked at least twice a year; Blood pressure: below 130/80, to be checked at every doctor’s visit; Cholesterol (LDL): below 100, to be checked at least once a year
• recommending questions to ask your doctor: 1) What are my A1C, blood pressure, and cholesterol numbers? 2) What are my treatment goals? 3) What do I need to do to reach and maintain my goals?
• developing a new tool to help promote this message: 1) Brochure for people with diabetes 2) Wallet card to help diabetics record their ABC numbers

While the number of diabetics in the United States is growing very quickly, up 49% between the years 1990 and 2000, this new treatment approach could help to reduce the number of lives lost to heart disease. Fortunately, controlling blood glucose levels, blood pressure, and LDL cholesterol levels can all be achieved with the same steps: maintain a healthy body weight; eat a healthy diet; get daily physical activity; don’t smoke; and take the medications you’ve been prescribed.

To read the complete NIH news release, go to: http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/nov2001/niddk-01.htm. For a copy of the brochure and a free wallet card, call 1-800-438-5383 or visit the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) web site at http://ndep.nih.gov. You can also call the ADA at 1-800-DIABETES or visit their web site at www.diabetes.org/makethelink.