NIDDK Health Information News April 2016

NIDDK Health Information News April 2016

April 2016 NIDDK Health Information News Promoting Health Race, Ethnicity, and Kidney Disease  African Americans, Hispanics, and American Indians are at high risk for developing kidney failure. Learn about kidney failure within these populations. Modest Weight Loss and Lifestyle Changes Can Cut Diabetes Risk Minorities have a greater chance of developing type 2 diabetes, but losing a modest amount of weight by consuming fewer calories, eating less fat, and being active for 30 minutes, 5 days a week, can cut their risk by as much as 58 percent. This infographic from the National Diabetes Education Program tells the story. Helping Hispanic Children Fight Obesity The prevalence of childhood obesity among Hispanics is 22.4 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. NIDDK’s Weight-control Information Network has resources for parents, in both English and Spanish, to help their children maintain a healthy weight through physical activity and good eating habits. Recognizing the Signs of IBS  Frequent abdominal pain, along with diarrhea, constipation, or both, could be signs of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In this Healthy Moments radio segment, NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers talks about seeing a doctor for IBS. NIDDK Launches Effort to Improve Electronic Data Use for Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Care Three priorities emerged from the NIDDK meeting on Using Health Information Technology (HIT) to Identify and Manage CKD Populations held in late 2015: developing a digital “care plan,” or a way of sharing patient plans of care between organizations; developing a computable phenotype for CKD, which would make assembling a patient registry possible; and developing a business plan to help health care organizations invest in HIT and population health. Work groups for each priority area will deliver their plans in the next 6 to 12 months. People Washingtonian Magazine Names NIDDK’s Dr. Rodgers A Hero of Government NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers was named one of three heroes of the federal workforce in Washingtonian’s March issue. Among his achievements during his 33 years of public service: discovering the first effective pain drug for sickle-cell disease and, in a recent clinical trial using stem-cell transplants, making a breakthrough that could lead to a cure for the disease. Social Media Trending on Twitter Are you interested in health care and minorities? Find out how diabetes and kidney disease affect minority populations at @NIDDKgov.