PRINCETON, N.J., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Novo Nordisk, a world leader in diabetes care, today announced plans to host community outreach events that take diabetes education out of the clinical setting and into a fun and supportive environment. In collaboration with DIVABETIC, a diabetes outreach organization, the program, Divabetic - Makeover Your Diabetes, brings together nationally-known beauty and fashion experts and diabetes educators to encourage women to improve how they or their loved ones live with diabetes. Women living with, at risk of, or affected by diabetes, and their friends and family are invited to attend these free motivational events.
"The majority of people diagnosed with diabetes are living with inadequate control of their disease, a fact that can be attributed in large part to the difficulty of making the lifestyle modifications necessary to manage the disease," said Alan Moses, M.D., associate vice president of medical affairs, Novo Nordisk. "Divabetic - Makeover Your Diabetes responds to a critical need in the community to take a novel approach to diabetes education by inspiring improved diabetes care and encouraging women to make healthier lifestyle choices."
Nearly 21 million Americans -- including more than 9 million women -- have diabetes and approximately one-third of them are not aware they have it. In New York City alone, 800,000 people are living with the chronic disease. Alarmingly, nearly 70 percent of all Americans diagnosed with diabetes are not successfully managing the condition, putting themselves at increased risk of serious complications. Women are uniquely impacted by diabetes not only because they are at high risk for serious complications and for gestational diabetes during pregnancy, but they also represent their families' primary providers of health information and impact the way family members live with diabetes.
Divabetic - Makeover Your Diabetes kicks off at New York City's Gotham Hall located at 1356 Broadway (at 36th Street) on February 22, and will make stops in New Orleans, Dallas, Los Angeles, Cleveland and Washington, DC throughout the year. In 2006, the tour visited Atlanta and Philadelphia. To learn more or register, the public may visit ChangingDiabetes-us.com and log on to Divabetic - Makeover Your Diabetes or call 1-800-634-8888.
"After years of working in show business, I became keenly aware of the positive impact a makeover can have on a woman's overall mood and confidence. I saw an opportunity to combine the glamour of a makeover party with diabetes education," said Max Szadek, DIVABETIC founder and former personal assistant to the late Grammy-award winning R&B artist, Luther Vandross. "With the support of Novo Nordisk, we are offering women the opportunity to feel great about themselves and make learning about diabetes personal, meaningful and fun."
About Novo Nordisk
Novo Nordisk is a healthcare company with an 80-year history of innovation and achievement in diabetes care. In addition to diabetes care, Novo Nordisk has a leading position within areas such as hemostasis management, growth hormone therapy, and hormone therapy for women. Novo Nordisk's business is driven by the Triple Bottom Line: a commitment to economic success, environmental soundness, and social responsibility to employees and customers. With headquarters in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs more than 23,000 employees in 79 countries, and markets its products in 179 countries. Novo Nordisk's B shares are listed on the stock exchanges in Copenhagen and London. Its ADRs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol 'NVO'. For global information, visit novonordisk.com; for United States information, visit novonordisk-us.com.
Novo Nordisk offers a range of tools and resources to help people living with diabetes improve their care on the above Web site and a Diabetes Tip Line available by calling 1-800-260-3730.
About DIVABETIC
DIVABETIC is a community-based organization that provides diabetes education and encouragement to women living with, at risk of, or affected by diabetes. The existence of DIVABETIC reflects a need in the community to improve quality of life, share knowledge, raise visibility and prevent the spread of diabetes and its health-related complications from occurring. What began as a one-time T-shirt fundraising endeavor has quickly become a grassroots movement to empower and educate women living with, at risk of, or affected by diabetes to 'take charge' of their condition and live their lives like divas. DIVABETIC's mission is to enrich the lives of women affected by diabetes. Max Szadek, former personal assistant to the late Luther Vandross, founded DIVABETIC in November 2004. DIVABETIC is proudly associated with the Diabetes Center of New Jersey. The Diabetes Center of New Jersey (DCNJ) is an affiliate of the Solaris Health System in Edison, New Jersey.
Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20020404/NVOLOGOAP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.orgPRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.comNovo NordiskCONTACT: Susan Jackson, of Novo Nordisk, +1-609-919-7776; or ShiraSilberman, of Biosector 2, +1-212-845-5621, SSilberman@biosector2.com, forNovo Nordisk
