Grant: Team Grant: Diabetes Mechanisms and Translational Solutions - LOI - General

Type 2 diabetes is a caused when one's pancreas is unable to make enough insulin to control blood sugar levels. Over time, high blood sugars can cause damage to the blood vessels, leading to heart attacks, kidney failure, amputations, and blindness. In addition to prescription medications, an important part of the management of diabetes is following a healthy diet consisting of fresh fruits, vegetables, fish, and whole grains. Unfortunately, this diet is more expensive than purchasing highly processed unhealthy foods. Many Canadians with diabetes are unable to afford these healthy foods, a condition known as food insecurity. Food insecurity often results in poor blood sugar control in patients with diabetes. Doctors and other healthcare providers have very few resources to help address food insecurity in their patients. We propose the development of a subsidy program, provided through healthcare encounters, which would help make healthy foods more affordable by providing $1.50/day/household member to be spent on a list of healthy foods. Through a carefully designed randomized controlled trial, we will prove that this program leads to improved blood sugar levels in patients with type 2 diabetes and food insecurity. We will then show how these improved blood sugars, will result in fewer complications and save the healthcare system money. Our team includes a number of high-level healthcare decision-makers from the government Ministry of Health, Alberta Health Services, and the largest healthcare insurer in the province (Alberta Blue Cross), who are keenly interested in our findings and willing to implement this program broadly if we find it to be effective.