A new study shows that peer relationships may play a key role in diabetes distress and improving quality of life among adolescents with type 1 diabetes By Dr Edith Holloway Type 1 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes affecting children and teenagers. The teenage years can be tricky for anyone. Teens need to find their … Read more Why peer support matters for adolescents with type 1 diabetes ..read more

The lessons we need to learn about the role of stigma By Dr Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott and Prof Jane Speight Public health campaigns are an important tool for health promotion. Unfortunately, research shows that they are not always effective. Worse yet, they can cause harm.   Diabetes campaigns are often designed to focus on how serious the condition is. Or, to show rising numbers of people living with the condition. Or, the actions that individuals can take to reduce their risk of diabetes or its complications. Such campaigns can attract criticism from people living with diabetes, an ..read more

Reason for hope and cause for concern By Dr Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott and Prof Jane Speight It is National Diabetes Week (14 – 20 July 2024) here in Australia. Usually, it is not so much a celebration, as a call to action. So, it is timely to reflect on the recent report from the Parliamentary Inquiry: The State of Diabetes Mellitus in Australia in 2024. What was the Inquiry? The Inquiry was announced in May 2023. It focused on five areas (see Box 1). The Inquiry Committee invited written submissions from the public. By July 2023, there were almost 500. Fifteen public hearings were held from J ..read more

The ACBRD collaborated with UK colleagues on this review of technology trials and cohort studies By Ralph Geerling For people with diabetes, there is a large volume of evidence showing the importance of maintaining blood glucose within recommended targets. It reduces the risk of other long-term health problems. However, achieving these targets is often not without a cost to the person’s emotional well-being or quality of life. Worries about low or high glucose, and the efforts involved in planning for or avoiding these, can take a heavy toll. As the focus on glucose-related targets has increas ..read more

ACBRD at the 28th PsychoSocial Aspects of Diabetes (PSAD) Scientific Meeting By Dr Eloise Litterbach, Jennifer Halliday, and Karen Pearce In April, we travelled to the PsychoSocial Aspects of Diabetes (PSAD) conference, in the beautiful city of Wuerzburg, Germany. Chaired by ACBRD’s Prof Jane Speight, the PSAD group is an international network. The aims are to improve the quality and dissemination of psychosocial research in diabetes, and to improve the effectiveness of diabetes care. This year, the conference included 71 researchers, health professionals and people living with diabetes, from ..read more

A consensus report highlights several ways in which psychologists add value By Chelsea Chum Managing diabetes can be difficult and stressful. It can create a heavy mental and emotional burden. This is known as diabetes distress. Clinical psychologists are experts in mental health and behavioural disorders. They are trained to deliver assessment and diagnostic tools. They know how to effectively share their knowledge with health teams to guide person-centred care.   An international group of psychologists specialising in diabetes have published a paper. It focuses on how psycholo ..read more

Researchers from Western Australia provide insights into impact, challenges and cultural nuances to improve care strategies By Sienna Russell-Green In Australia, as in many places around the world, type 2 diabetes (T2D) is becoming more common among teenagers. In Western Australia, T2D is more likely to affect Aboriginal teens than non-Aboriginal teens. However, there is very little information about how Aboriginal teens and their families cope with the diagnosis of T2D. Some Aboriginal families live far from cities, so accessing healthcare can be tricky. Historical contexts and cultural facto ..read more

By Alison Robinson Being pregnant can be stressful. There’s appointments, scans, and information overload. And for women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, pregnancy can add stress to managing blood glucose levels and worry about risk of complications during pregnancy and/or birth. For these reasons, it’s important that women with pre-existing diabetes get the support they need before and during pregnancy. But what should that support look like? Researchers at McMaster University in Canada asked three questions about women with pre-existing diabetes in pregnancy: What influences glucose levels ..read more

An Australian study explores the experiences of mothers with young children By Laura Jenkins One-third of young children in Australia use screens during meals every day. Screen use includes TV, tablets, and smartphones. Research shows that children who use screens during meals often lack adequate nutrition. This association is stronger in families with lower income and education levels. So, it is important to identify strategies that help families to reduce the use of screens during meals. Researchers at the Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition (IPAN) have put a focus on this area. Th ..read more

American research shows glucose levels affect accuracy and reaction time By Dr Uffe Søholm Hypoglycaemia, or low blood glucose, is common among adults with insulin-treated diabetes. When glucose levels fall, the person with diabetes can experience a range of symptoms.  In the past, researchers have looked at the effects of hypos on everyday brain functions, such as thinking, learning, attention, memory, and reaction time. But they have done this in in the safety of hospital-based experiments. Here, researchers lower blood glucose in a controlled way, and conduct various tests to examine t ..read more