Last Updated on September 24, 2023
In case you didn’t know, November is Diabetes Awareness Month. Every year organizations in the United States and around the world work to raise awareness for the symptoms and severity of both type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Awareness Month began in 1975, but wasn’t officially recognized by U.S. government until the mid 1980s. The highlight of diabetes Awareness Month is World Diabetes Day on November 14th.
In 1991, the International Diabetes Federation started World Diabetes Day. The first World Diabetes Day was recognized in the United States in 2007. Now 230 associations have joined together in 160 countries and over 500 events to celebrate World Diabetes Day across the world. This year the IDF published a list of the major events that are being held around the world on World Diabetes Day.
Both Diabetes Awareness Month and World Diabetes Day were created to help combat the rising number of diagnosed diabetes every year. Close to 30 million people are diagnosed with diabetes in the United States alone. 86 more million Americans are considered to be pre-diabetic and are likely to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. More than likely you know someone that has been affected by type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
The Effects Of Diabetes
- A person is diagnosed with diabetes every 19 seconds in the United States
- Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure
- Diabetes is one of the leading causes for blindness in Americans
- Diabetes increases the changes of amputation by 10% compared to those without diabetes
- Diabetes is estimated to cost the United States $245 billion dollars in direct and indirect expenses
- Around 1 in 5 dollars spent on health care is used to care for someone diagnosed with diabetes
Each year Diabetes Awareness Month gets a little bigger and creates a larger impact. This year several organizations are achieving exciting things to celebrate type 1 diabetes awareness month and type 2 diabetes awareness month. During the month of November thousands of organizations host events and launch campaigns to raise awareness and raise money for research. The American Diabetes Association launched the “Eat Well, America!” campaign to encourage healthy eating to prevent diabetes. The ADA will be sharing healthy recipes, tips, and how-to videos on healthy eating for diabetics.
Beyond Type 1, a nonprofit organization working to for education on diabetes is launching a “$1 Million Dollar Digital Campaign. During the campaign, every dollar donated will go directly to organizations and programs that are working to educate others or cure diabetes. Beyond Type 1 is also using their website to highlight successful type 1 diabetics to provide encouragement for other diabetics. This is how they are celebrating type 1 diabetes awareness month.
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation has launch an awareness campaign called, “T1D Looks Like Me” which will inclined a collection of photos using the hash tag #T1DLooksLikeMe. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness of type 1 diabetes and the effects it is having on
If you’re looking to participate with Diabetes Awareness Month, there are several ways you can get involved. The easiest way is to promote awareness via social media or join campaigns organized for type 2 diabetes awareness month. The American Diabetes Association has created several social media share image that you can download to publish on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Using social media is a simple and quick way to raise awareness for diabetes during November.
Another simple way to promote Diabetes Awareness Month is still advertise the month at your workplace or school. The American Diabetes Association also has several posters that you can print and hang up. The ADA has posters are available in a couple different sizes and both in English and in Spanish. Simply printing one of these posters and placing them in a high-trafficked area can make a significant impact in the awareness of diabetes in your area.
GET BOTH THE DOWNLOADBLE POSTERS AND SOCIAL MEDIA IMAGES HERE
If you would like to get more involved with diabetes awareness during November, you can attend, volunteer, or host an event. There are countless ideas for hosting an event to raise awareness and donations for diabetes. Many organizations host 5K races, concerts, galas, and much more that you can participate in. If there aren’t any events near you, consider hosting your own. If you don’t know where to start in hosting your own event, contact your local American Diabetes Association chapter for resources and assistance.
We at DiabetesLifeSolutions.com are excited to be participating in this year’s Diabetes Awareness Month and aware people about what month is diabetes awareness month. We will be extremely active this November working to raise awareness. Several of our agents joined in a diabetic health fair in Nebraska. We will also be participating in a diabetic awareness event in Kansas as well as Pittsburgh.
