November 1 – T1Day

JDRF is kicking off the first annual T1Day on 11.1.11. We’re asking all members of the type 1 diabetes community to help us make this day a huge success by raising awareness about type 1 diabetes on this day and throughout the month of November. Some of the activities we have planned are:

• Major announcement from JDRF, which better emphasizes our focus on type 1 diabetes
• Team JDRF events and fundraising pages in honor of T1Day
• Urging advocates to sign a petition to the FDA asking them to issue guidance for artificial pancreas technology advances to better treat and potentially cure type 1 diabetes
• Facebook and Twitter activities involving the community to raise awareness of type 1 diabetes throughout the day
• Visible presence on a number of national media outlets announcing T1Day
• And much more throughout the month of November!

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and check back here frequently for updates on how you can help!

November 14 – World Diabetes Day San Francisco Extravaganza

Festivities start at 5:00 PM.

Join the diabetes community as we light Union Square blue! Festivities will include inspirational talks, celebrity guests, ice skating, refreshments, music, dancing, kids arts & crafts, a diabetes resource fair and…

attempt to break the Guinness World Record for the LARGEST HULA HOOPING ACTIVITY!

We need 114 people to set a new record and bring global awareness to diabetes. If you are interested in joining, please complete the form below. Hoops will be available for those who need one. All ages welcome.

If hula hooping is not your thing please come anyway in support of diabetes awareness and for the many other fun activities.

This event is FREE!

Hosted by JDRF, ADA, diaTribe, Diabetes Hands Foundation, Dance Out Diabetes, DiabetesMine.com, UCSF and CPMC.

Sponsored by: Lifescan, Inc.

RSVP Form:

We will email you details as they are confirmed.

Renewal of U.S. Government Special Diabetes Program Will Ensure Progress toward Better Treatments and a Cure for Type 1 Diabetes

NEW YORK, Nov. 5, 2010 – Thanks to significant research advances in recent years, people living with type 1 diabetes have received better treatments and therapies.  Scientists have made headway in uncovering the possible cause of type 1 diabetes, and in their efforts to find ways to prevent, treat, or reverse the autoimmune disease and its complications. Despite this progress, we still have a long road ahead of us to identify a cure that will eliminate type 1 diabetes once and for all.

Diabetes of all types continues to grow at an alarming rate – in the last 30 years , the number of people with diabetes has skyrocketed to about 24 million people in the United States alone, including as many as three million Americans affected by type 1 diabetes. The cost of diabetes is staggering – one out of every five health care dollars is spent caring for someone with diagnosed diabetes, and one out of every three Medicare dollars is attributed to diabetes. The national price tag for diabetes is at an astounding $174 billion per year and that cost is estimated to almost triple in the next 25 years.  Sustained scientific commitment and funding for research are needed to ensure we reach our goal of eliminating type 1 diabetes and its complications.

“November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, a time to bring attention to priority issues for those of us trying to bring about an end to type 1 diabetes. Chief among our priorities is to ensure that federal funding levels remain sufficient to support the necessary research to drive the field toward a cure for the disease and its complications,” said Jeffrey Brewer, President and CEO of JDRF.

JDRF is encouraging the public to learn about a key source of diabetes support, the Special Diabetes Program (SDP), a federal-funded program that has contributed significantly to many advances in diabetes research. The program is currently up for renewal before Congress. And without continued funding, support for much-needed clinical research will be in jeopardy.

The Special Diabetes Program (SDP), established by Congress in 1997, currently funds $150 million annually for type 1 diabetes research, representing 35 percent of the federal government’s support for type 1 diabetes research. JDRF, also committed to funding research toward a cure for type 1 diabetes, is calling for the multi-year renewal of the program before Congress adjourns for the year. “This would ensure that the research advancements made from the program’s early years that have now translated to human clinical trials can continue uninterrupted to further our mission of treating and curing type 1 diabetes,” said Cynthia Rice, Vice President of Government Relations for JDRF. “Without the program’s renewal, total federal support for type 1 diabetes research would drop to below FY 2004 levels, and we have come too far to let that happen.”

Research Progress to Date

Important strides in diabetes research have been made with the support of the Special Diabetes Program (SDP), including studies that seek to unveil the root causes of type 1 diabetes, or to test therapies that could prevent the disease altogether. Studies aimed at developing cell-based therapies for beta cell replacement, or programs that play a critical role in testing and confirming new diabetes management technologies in children are also funded through the SDP.

Research supported by the SDP and others, including JDRF, has also led to the development of new technologies – like insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors to test and control blood sugar – which have set the stage for what will ultimately lead to an artificial pancreas. As a result, people with type 1 diabetes can now manage their diabetes better than ever before. These tools have helped people to live better lives today, including lessening the risk for low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), which can be life-threatening, and high blood sugar (hyperglycemia), which can lead to long-term complications, such as blindness or kidney disease.

“In fact, thanks to better monitoring tools, people with type 1 diabetes now have a lower risk of complications than ever before,” said Richard Insel, M.D., Chief Scientific Officer for JDRF. “When complications do develop, doctors have better ways to diagnose them, slow their progression, and lessen their impact. All these research advances mean a better life and longer life expectancy for people with type 1 diabetes.”

JDRF Activities

“As we all participate in a variety of activities that will raise awareness about the urgency of diabetes this November, let’s remember to keep in mind that it is through progress in research, such as those funded by JDRF and the Special Diabetes Program, that we can continue to make improvements in the lives of people living with type 1 diabetes today and in the future,” continued Mr. Brewer.

As part of JDRF’s efforts to raise awareness for type 1 diabetes and encourage the importance of research, JDRF will participate in a number of events and activities around the country throughout the month. In particular, JDRF will host an event known as “Type 1 Talk,” an online and offline social media gathering initiated by a live UStream broadcast that will be presented by JDRF staff and volunteers on World Diabetes Day, Nov. 14. Type 1 Talk will allow people with type 1 diabetes from across the U.S. to converge in their local communities and engage in type 1 diabetes-related conversation with one another.

For more Bay Area events on World  Diabetes Day, visit our online event calendar: http://events.jdrfbayarea.org/calendar/day/2010/11/14

Also, JDRF is encouraging the public to learn more about type 1 diabetes and the importance of diabetes research through various efforts that include highlighting the warning signs and symptoms of type 1 diabetes, and the differences between type 1 diabetes and the more prevalent type 2 diabetes. For more information on JDRF during National Diabetes Awareness Month, please visit www.jdrf.org.

Dish Network

Dish Network is proud to support JDRF.  Order Dish Network and $100 will be donated to JDRF!  Call 1-888-383-3845 (must mention offer code: 03JDRF) or order online at: dishnetwork.com/jdrf.  Let’s show our support; thanks Dish Network!

Build-a-Bear Workshops

Come visit a Build-a-Bear Workshop store during the month of November! Make a huggable stuffed friend and support JDRF, through special donation prompts on the ”pin pad” checkout stations. The “pin pad” will prompt call credit/debit card customers for a charitable donation, which will directly benefit JDRF.

Find a store near you >

Bay Area Builid-a-Bear Locations:

Hillsdale Mall
328 Hillsdale Mall
San Mateo CA 94403

Broadway Plaza
1248 Broadway Plaza
Walnut Creek CA 94596-5112

Dream Dinners

Thanks to the generous sponsorship by Johnson & Johnson and JDRF, San Francisco’s Ferry Building will go blue this World Diabetes Day!

We invite you to join together with other people with diabetes at this very special event as we celebrate together World Diabetes Day.

When:
Nov. 14, starting at 5 pm until about 7 pm-ish

What:

• Come with your entire family
• Dress up in blue
• Paint your face blue
• Bring a flashlight and blue cellophane
• Bring blue signs

Where (Map):
One Ferry Building
San Francisco, California 94111
Park between Ferry Building and Embarcadero

Organized By:   diaTribe®, JDRF, and TuDiabetes

diaTribe® is an independent, advertising-free, e-newsletter for everyone eager to learn about the latest advances in diabetes management focusing on research and product news. It features reviews of the latest drugs and devices, interviews with leading figures in the diabetes world, and other information and insights not available anywhere else. Sign up for your complimentary subscription at www.diatribe.us. diaTribe has organized World Diabetes Day in the Bay Area since it began in 2007. diaTribe founder Kelly Close has had diabetes for over 20 years; she and co-founder Alisa Bekins have been on the JDRF San Francisco branch board for several years.

Diabetes Hands Foundation (DHF) is a Bay Area-based 501(c)3 nonprofit that runs TuDiabetes (in English) and EsTuDiabetes (in Spanish), two online communities for people touched by diabetes. Through its communities, DHF has also developed numerous diabetes awareness programs, such as Word In Your Hand, Drawing Diabetes and, for this World Diabetes Day (Nov. 14), The Big Blue Test.