I few days ago I touched on the subject of NY-area drug store chain, Duane Reade. The company established a free diabetes program a while back, offering advice, education and support groups. Duane Reade says it's expanding the program because of customer demand.

Is this part of a larger trend? Looks like it. According to yesterday's New York Times, more and more people are turning to drug stores for medical services. We're talking non-urgent things like sprains and minor infections...and diabetes care. Some are frustrated by lack of access to their regular physician. Others are having budget issues going the traditional route. It's super-convenient because you can be seen without an appointment, then get your prescription filled right there.

Drug store chains - Duane Reade, Wal-Mart, CVS and Walgreens included - are stepping up to the plate to fill the void. "Urgent Care Lite," is the tag it's been given. According to the Times, the number of these clinics has exploded in the past two years. And many feel that's a big problem because these clinics are not tightly regulated.

The Democratic presidential candidates all know this: whoever gets the nomination has an excellent shot at making it to the White House. First, though, is the long, hard, down and dirty campaign slog in which each candidate has to do the impossible - try and be all things to all people.

One thing we can except is that they all devote a little time to addressing diabetes. Specifically, finding a cure for type 1 diabetes and strategies for containing the unprecedented spread of type 2 diabetes. The type 2 "epidemic" (as it is sometimes called) is all the more serious because of the strain it is adding to the US healthcare system, a system already failing to meet the needs of many Americans.

During Monday night's CNN/YouTube debate, the candidates were asked about their plans for the healthcare system. Click here to read what they had to say about health issues. Two of the candidates, Senator Chris Dodd (CT) and Governor Bill Richardson (NM), both mentioned diabetes and their desire to cope with the problem, but they didn't get a chance to go into detail in the context of a televised debate. Such is the world we live in, folks! Visit CNN to read a transcript of the debate.

Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton has joined with other New York lawmakers to push for Congressional funding to fight the spread of type 2 in that state. The requested sum? $120 million. Click here to check out Allie's take on that issue.

King County, Washington - following in the footsteps of New York - has banned restaurants from cooking foods in trans fats. King County is home to Seattle, the city famous for its generous rainfall and equally generous caffeine intake. The new rule stipulates that, in addition to the trans fats ban, all eateries in the Seattle-area must also provide nutritional information about menu items.

The trans fats ban was passed by the King County Board of Health in an effort to stem soaring rates of illnesses that are linked to obesity, like type 2 diabetes. Board members and their supporters (including a representative from the American Diabetes Association) argue the change will help turn the tide by improving eating habits. Their opponents, however, have vigorously argued that this is not true. Restaurant patrons already know they're choosing unhealthy foods, they argue, and this new law won't prevent them from ordering fatty and sugar-laden foods. "I have a six-letter word to describe them [the board members and their supporters]," says restaurant-owner Chris Clifford. "It's 'stupid.' You can't help stupid people." Ouch. Well, this is a case where only time can prove him right or wrong. Click here to read more on the new measures.

The beta-blocker carvedilol does not cause weight gain in diabetic patients, declares a new study just out. Significance? It means the drug does away with a problematic side-effect of other (earlier) beta-blockers, which are medications prescribed to correct high blood pressure. The study has been published in the American Journal of Medicine (July 2007) and was conducted by researchers at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York.

Around eleven hundred patients participated in the study, all of whom have Type 2 diabetes and also suffer from high blood pressure. Some took the new drug carvedilol, while others were given the standard metoprolol. Over the course of five months the patients on metoprolol gained an average of 1.19 kg/2.6 lbs, whereas those on taking carvedilol experienced an average gain of 0.17 kg/0.37 lbs, which is considered insignificant.

Weight gain is an undesirable side-effect of medications in virtually any circumstance. However, it is particularly true for people with Type 2 diabetes or those at risk for T2 because overweight and obesity contributes to insulin resistance. In other words, weight gain will likely increase your chances of developing T2 if you're already predisposed or it will make your T2 worse if you already have it...putting you more at risk for the kinds of heart problems that beta-blockers are prescribed to treat! So it's no surprise that Franz H. Messerli, the lead author of the study, told Reuters that doctors should "avoid traditional beta-blockers such as atenolol and metoprolol in the diabetic hypertensive patient or in the hypertensive patient at risk for diabetes."

Diabetes is making a name for itself and it's spreading like wildfire. Politicians are uniting to build a $120 million campaign to educate diabetics to prevent the spread of the disease and its complications.

Senator Clinton criticizes the reaction to the problem, rather than taking measures to prevent it from occurring. She questions why current money is unquestionably $pent on treating complications from diabetes -- such as amputations and dialysis. Good point, Senator. Ask Bush if he's got any friends up at Eli Lilly. A good answer can always be found in a temporary restraining order. She and fellow politicians propose more money be spent on programs for weight-loss, nutrition education and other preventive efforts to best curtail the growing number of diabetics in the United States.

The legislation proposed would provide $90 million to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Diabetes Translation for diabetes surveillance, research and educational activities. It would also allot $30 million for three four-year projects that would examine how best to translate diet and exercise interventions into effective clinical practice.

A new business trend in the making? New York area drug store chain Duane Reade has announced it will establish the Diabetes Resource Center, with services and assistance to be provided free of charge to diabetics and their families, whether or not they are customers of the stores. The center will be created at the Duane Reade flagship store on Broadway in New York City. According to the company's press release, there is lots on the agenda: "The first of its kind, the Center offers a full range of services and educational training to encourage the adoption of lifestyle changes that can help promote long-term good health." This assistance will be provided by the store's pharmacists, staff and by certified diabetes educators. Some sessions will be scheduled and registration is required, but the center will also offer a walk-in advice clinic and reference library.

Interested? Duane Reade invites you to call or email for more info. The phone number is 1-866-913-8486 or 1-212-586-0354. Email the company at brodink@duanereade.com. The company's website is www.duanereade.com.

The idea, say company reps, is for Duane Reade to reach out and help the thousands of diabetics in the NY area who are not getting adequate care for the condition. Doubtless, this move is also intended to be good for business. And, hey, why not? It's a for-profit enterprise, after all. Makes you wonder...maybe Duane Reade, in establishing the Diabetes Resource Center, is upping the ante in attracting the valuable spending potential of diabetic customers. Other drug store chains up until now have seemed content to give a nod to their diabetic customers by displaying insulin pumps and other paraphernalia near the pharmacy checkout. Maybe, however, this will spark more ambitious measures elsewhere...

Big pharma giant Novo Nordisk wants to remind you of its involvement in a social outreach program for diabetics. Entitled "Divabetic - Makeover Your Diabetes," the program is being touted as a series of fun community outreach events designed to support, educate and motivate women with Type 2 diabetes and those who are at-risk for it. It's also open to those who do not have diabetes themselves, but who have been adversely affected through the diagnosis of a loved one. The "Divabetic" part of the title refers to the outreach organization DIVABETIC, which is collaborating with Novo Nordisk in this project.

Divabetic offers women makeovers at the hands of a team of fashion and beauty gurus. It's all about having fun with fashion, beauty and the like. All that GIRL-STUFF. Hmm. Nice, but not really related to diabetes education, is it? Well, no. But the idea is to use that as a means to an end, say the organizers. You know, self-esteem and all that jazz. The idea is to get away from the very un-fun and un-sexy clinical learning environment, which tends to alienate those who are most in need of help.

The goal is to motivate attendees to get control of their diabetes by making lifestyle changes. You know what I mean - The Biggies: eat healthy, exercise, take your meds. Alan Moses, associate vice president of medical affairs for Novo, says the company acknowledges the role that overall lifestyle changes can play in turning around a diabetic's health status, but that they also have come to understand how hard it is for most people to make that change. That's where motivation comes into play...in the form of makeovers. Yes, says DIVABETIC founder Max Szadek. When women look great, they feel great, and you have to feel great about yourself before you can get motivated to take care of your health, he enthuses.

Divabetic events are free. They will be taking place around the country (big cities, only, folks), starting with New York at Gotham Hall on February 22. Want to read more? Read Novo's press release, visit the ChangingDiabetes website or call 1-800-634-8888. Or check out DIVABETIC's sassy and fun site.

Allie Beatty (pictured) is a young woman with a mission. Combining her entrepreneurial spirit with a strong desire to help find a cure for Type 1 diabetes, the New York state resident founded the website Shop4Cures. The notion is delightfully simple: stores advertise on the site and provide coupons, discounts and product info. Shop4Cures then donates eighty percent of its advertising revenues to a range of nonprofit organizations that help fund research to cure diseases. In addition to helping fund diabetes research, profits from Shop4Cures will also go to organizations battling diseases such as cancer, heart disease and multiple sclerosis.

A Type 1 diabetic herself for over twenty years now, Beatty says she was inspired to start the site after hearing about a potential cure for diabetes and other autoimmune diseases that is currently under research. The problem was a lack of funding ($1.5 million, to be precise). That's when the Shop4Cures concept was born. Worth a look!

NY1 News is running a really fascinating little piece about diabetes and diversity in the New York area. Health professionals are realizing that they face an added challenge in fighting the rising tide of diabetes: the ethnic diversity of the region is amazing. This diversity is something that physicians and other other professionals must grapple with to ensure that everyone has access to good diabetes care.

The article profiles Queens, where almost fifty percent of the people are immigrants. Dr. Isaac Sachmechi, at the Queens Hospital's Center for Excellence in Diabetes Management says, "We have southeast Asian, we have Guyanese, we have Hispanics, we have African-Americans, so we have a diversity of patients. Each ethnic group, they have their own diet, different diets, different cultures that we have to address when we see and treat these patients." For instance, diabetes patient Sradhanan Ramrattan, says his traditional Indian diet consisted of lots of carbohydrates, which he now knows meant he was unwittingly overloading on sugar.

Dr. Sachmachi also talks about the need to understand and work within the parameters of different cultures. "Different populations, they have different attitudes towards the disease itself," he says. "If they have an ethnic background they are not going to give up that ethnicity because that is not something they can change. So you have to help them adjust and adapt to the illness as well," says diabetes educator Hildegarde Payne.