New global campaign launched to fight urban diabetes

‘Cities Changing Diabetes’, a new partnership programme to fight the urban diabetes challenge has been launched with Mexico City the first major city to sign-up to the programme.

“The global diabetes epidemic is an emergency in slow motion,” says Lars Rebien Sørensen, CEO, Novo Nordisk, the Danish based healthcare company that is leading the initiative. “While there are many factors fuelling the growth trajectory of diabetes, the most striking contributor is urbanisation and the growth of cities. The ‘Cities Changing Diabetes’ programme is our call to arms for people around the world to work together to tackle this for the long-term.”

Organisers estimate that by 2030 more than half a billion people will suffer from diabetes. Novo Nordisk says that nearly two thirds of people with diabetes live in cities, and those who move to cities are significantly more likely to develop diabetes than those who remain in rural settings.

The aim of the programme is to map the problem, share solutions and drive concrete action to fight the diabetes challenge in big cities around the world. The programme will be developed in partnership with University College London (UCL) and supported by Steno Diabetes Center, Denmark, a world-leading institution in diabetes care and prevention, as well as a range of local partners including healthcare professionals, city authorities, urban planners, businesses, academics and community leaders.

During 2014, the partners will work together to better understand the diabetes challenge in cities in order to identify the actions needed to tackle it. Following the initial discovery phase, Novo Nordisk and its partners, will announce action plans for each of the cities that will be part of the programme.

Dr. Armando Ahued Ortega, the Minister of Health of Mexico City, states that early detection of diabetes are one of his administration’s public health priorities.

“We have implemented large-scale initiatives to fight overweight, obesity and diabetes and we are starting to see the results,” he said. “However, diabetes continues to constitute a heavy burden for the city’s health services. I look forward to seeing the results from the research phase, as they will provide a solid foundation for developing an integrated response to tackle this public health emergency. I am very proud of Mexico City taking the global lead to fight urban diabetes.”