Friends Of Luther Vandross Aim To Change Diabetes, One Diva At A Time (NAPSA)—Morethan 9 million women and 12 million men havedia- betes, and approximately one-third of them are not aware that they are living with the disease. Alarmingly, nearly 70 percent of people diagnosed with diabetes are at risk of developing serious complications. However, people living with or who are in some wayaffected by diabetes can feel great about themselves and improve how they or their loved ones live with diabetes. A world leader in diabetes care, Novo Nordisk, and DivaBETIC, a community outreach organization made up of friends of the late Grammy-winning R&B artist Luther Vandross, who died of diabetes complications, are inviting the public to do just that. The national initiative, “Novo Nordisk Presents: Divabetic— Makeover Your Diabetes,” brings together nationally known beauty and fashion experts and diabetes educators to offer motivational self-care tips as well as a wealth of personalized onlinetools. “Diabetes is a serious condition but it doesn’t mean you can’t live well,” said Max Szadek, friend and personal assistant to Vandross, and founder of DIVABETIC. “We are answering a critical need to help women and men understand that they are not alone in their struggle to manage diabetes and are encouraging them to make informed decisions about nutrition and physical activity, to understand how to set small, attainable life goals and to treat themselves to the pampering they deserve.” oS igs nf ; ae Two groups have combined forces to form “Novo Nordisk Presents: Divabetic—Makeover Your Diabetes,” offering personalized educa- tional tools to make managing diabetes more meaningful and fun. Inspired by Vandross’ admiration of self-confident women, the “Novo Nordisk Presents: Divabetic—Makeover Your Diabetes” team offers sometips to encourage people living with diabetes to feel better physically and emotionally: e Set reasonable goals for maximum rewards: Let small successes such as a 10-minute walk twice a week motivate you to set more goals, such as regularly monitoring your blood sugar levels. Take advantage of tips from your physician and at Changing Diabetes-us.com. * Know your shape and show yourshape: Dressinflattering clothes and accessorize. A positive self-image can affect your attitude about managing yourdiabetes. * Learn from others: Find people who are successful in con- trolling their diabetes. Talk with them. Ask questions and tell your story. Everyone can benefit by sharing successes and challenges. For more information about improving your diabetes care and initiatives being conducted by Novo Nordisk and DIvaBETIC,visit ChangingDiabetes-us.com orcall (800) 260-3730. Did You Know? Womenare uniquely impacted by diabetes, not only because theyareat high risk for serious complications and for gestational diabetes during pregnancy, but because they also represent their families’ primary providers of health information and impact the way family memberslive with diabetes. @
