diabetes
Introducing the PREVIEW study:
PREVention of diabetes through lifestyle intervention and population studies in Europe and around the World
PREVIEW: PREVention of diabetes through lifestyle intervention and population studies in Europe and around the World Nicky Gilbert Lead Research Dietitian, Intervention Co-ordinator and Group Instructor PREVIEW study, University of Nottingham
Dr Moira Taylor, Associate Professor of Human Nutrition (Dietetics), University of Nottingham PREVIEW team
PREVIEW is an acronym of PREVention of diabetes through lifestyle Intervention and population studies in Europe and around the World. This collaborative research project (led by Professor Anne Raben from the University of Copenhagen) is funded by the European Union in its 7th Framework Programme. Eight European (Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland) and three overseas countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand) are involved in the project, which started in January 2013 and will run until December 2018. Background
Cheryl Percival, Group Instructor PREVIEW study University of Nottingham
Laura Helm, Research Dietitian PREVIEW study University of Nottingham
Please see end of article for details of other contributors.
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In the last century, Type 2 diabetes (T2D) was named ‘adult-onset diabetes’, because it was mainly older people who suffered from it. However, T2D is now affecting children and adolescents and having T2D not only means living life in a rigid manner (e.g. by having to watch what to eat), but also confers a higher risk of developing diseases such as high blood pressure, coronary heart diseases and chronic kidney failure, to name a few. Despite this global rise in T2D, it is a condition that may be prevented. Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90 percent of all cases of diabetes, primarily caused by the worldwide obesity epidemic (1). The relative risk of getting T2D rises exponentially with increasing body mass index (BMI); a BMI above 23kg/m² already doubles the risk of getting T2D (2). The increasing prevalence of obesity is caused by general food abundance together with increased seden-
NHDmag.com May 2015 - Issue 104
tariness (sitting time in front of the TV, computer, etc) and decreased physical activity during work and leisure time (3). Recent studies have also indicated that stress and certain sleeping patterns may also promote overweight and obesity. Indeed, short sleep appears to increase appetite and may be particularly pertinent in increasing obesity and its related diseases (4, 5). Diabetes is a costly condition; according to WHO, the direct healthcare costs of diabetes range from two and a half percent to 15 percent of annual national healthcare budgets (6). This worrying trend calls for action and a need for a variety of innovative approaches to address the problem. One key to success is the prevention of overweight and obesity. Another is to help obese people lose weight and maintain a reduced body weight. In order to successfully fight against T2D, there are two major questions that still need to be answered: “What type of diet is most effective?” and “How intense should physical activity be performed to be able to maintain weight loss?” Both questions are addressed in the PREVIEW study and the public health and socio-economic impact of PREVIEW is expected to be significant. Aims
The primary goal of PREVIEW is to identify the most efficient lifestyle pattern for the prevention of Type 2 diabetes in a population of pre-diabetic,
