News Release

Local angles: Harnett, Lee, Nash and Sampson counties

New study seeks to lower diabetes risk in youth

CHAPEL HILL - Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing will study students at six North Carolina middle schools to determine if changes in schools can lower risk factors for type 2 diabetes.

The study, which begins this fall, is part of the nationwide HEALTHY study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The HEALTHY study will enroll thousands of sixth graders in 42 middle schools throughout the United States. Participating schools will be randomly assigned two groups: one that implements more physical activity, offers healthier foods and teaches students about healthy behaviors, and one that offers food choices and activity programs typical of U.S. middle schools.

"We hope to learn if changes in schools such as better food options, improvements in physical activity programs and education about eating better and moving more result in healthier kids and lower risk factors for type 2 diabetes," said Dr. Joanne Harrell, principal investigator for North Carolina and a UNC professor of nursing.

While there are no national data on the prevalence of type 2 diabetes in youth, clinics around the country are reporting that more young people, especially from minority groups, are developing the disease, Harrell said.

The schools participating in the study are Dunn and Overhills middle schools in Harnett County; East Lee Middle School in Lee County; Nash Central and J.W. Parker middle schools in Nash County; and Roseboro-Salemburg Middle School in Sampson County.

Schools will be assigned to a program group, which implements the changes, or to a comparison group, which continues to offer food choices and PE programs typically seen in U.S. middle schools. Schools in the program group will offer:

• healthier choices from the cafeteria and vending machines (e.g., lower fat foods, more fruits and vegetables, and drinks with no added sugar);
  
• longer, more intense periods of physical activity; and
• activities and awareness campaigns that promote long-term healthy behaviors.
  

After two-and-a-half years, students from all groups will be tested for diabetes risk factors such as blood levels of glucose, insulin and lipids (cholesterol). Their fitness level, blood pressure, height, weight and waist circumference will also be recorded.

In planning the HEALTHY study, the researchers relied on the results of six pilot studies in other middle schools. In one pilot study, about half of eighth graders in 12 schools were overweight or at risk for overweight. Few had diabetes, but about 41 percent had abnormally high readings of fasting blood glucose, pointing to a much higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

"The alarming rise in obesity and type 2 diabetes in all age groups poses a major public health crisis for this country. This important study is one component of a multi-faceted research agenda to address this dual epidemic, which threatens the health of our youth and the vitality of our health care system," said Dr. Elias A. Zerhouni, NIH director.

Results from the HEALTHY study are expected in 2009. Sponsored by the NIH's National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, the study is part of a broad research initiative called Studies to Treat or Prevent Pediatric Type 2 Diabetes, which seeks to improve the treatment and prevention of type 2 diabetes in youth. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) co-sponsors the HEALTHY study, and the nonprofit Institute for Public Health and Water Research supports the study through a grant to the ADA.

The study is also being conducted by researchers at the Baylor University College of Medicine in Houston and the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas; Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, Ore.; Temple University in Philadelphia and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Penn.; the University of California at Irvine, Calif.; and George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

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N.C. HEALTHY study contact: Phyllis Kennel, (919) 966-8561, kennel@email.unc.edu

School of Nursing contact: Amanda P. Meyers (919) 966-4619, amanda_meyers@unc.edu

News Services contact: Becky Oskin, (919) 962-8596, becky_oskin@unc.edu