Food Labels and Community Health Workers in Diabetes Care

Introduction

This paper finds, analyzes, and assesses a study related to a diabetes intervention. The study involves a review of the effects of food label use on diet quality among Latinos with type 2 diabetes who received assistance from community health workers. The article was published in a prominent academic public health journal and offers valuable insights into culturally targeted diabetes management. While food labels are only as effective as their actual use allows, the concurrent involvement of community health workers to coach and assist type 2 diabetics in the study shows meaningful promise.

Brief Summary of Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes, unlike type 1, typically manifests in adulthood. At the very least, it does not appear clearly and reliably until at least the teenage years in most cases. It is a less extreme form of diabetes but remains dangerous. Type 2 diabetics are those whose bodies do not produce enough insulin naturally to keep blood sugar levels in check. While there are exceptions, people with type 2 diabetes are also often obese or otherwise in poor health. Notably, individuals with type 2 diabetes can effectively reverse the condition if they adopt healthier eating and lifestyle habits.

In the meantime, treatment is rendered in the form of medications to lower blood sugar. The frontline medication for type 2 diabetics is typically Metformin, but more extreme cases may require the same insulin used for type 1 diabetics. Common symptoms of elevated blood sugar include weight loss, increased hunger, increased thirst and urination, and slow healing of sores. Failing to manage diabetes over time can lead to disability or even death due to heart or blood vessel disease, nerve damage, kidney damage, eye damage, foot damage, hearing loss, skin problems, or possibly Alzheimer's disease, although the latter link has not yet been conclusively established (Mayo, 2016; WebMD, 2016).

Purpose and Method of the Study

As can be fairly inferred from the study's title, the purpose is to determine whether a combination of food label consultation and community health worker assistance can help Latinos better manage their type 2 diabetes. As stated by the study's authors in the abstract, the goal is to "determine the impact of an intervention led by community health workers (CHWs) on food label use and to assess whether food label use and diet quality mediate the intervention's impact on glycemic control" (Kollannoor-Samuel et al., 2016).

The method of the study was to test the intervention by measuring participants' A1C levels at the outset and then repeating those measurements at three, twelve, and eighteen months. As widely understood, A1C reflects a person's average blood sugar level over the preceding three months. A total of 203 Latino participants were enrolled; 103 served as the control group, in which the intervention was not applied, while the remaining 100 formed the intervention group (Kollannoor-Samuel et al., 2016).

Conclusion

It has become clear over the years that the use of education and reinforcement to get people on the right track from a diet and lifestyle standpoint is necessary, as leaving people to their own devices is not working out all that well. Many people are developing type 2 diabetes when it is entirely preventable. Even individuals with a family history of the disease can avoid or delay onset if they make the right adjustments to their diet and lifestyle. The consequences of failing to do so can be debilitating or even fatal, which makes the stakes of effective intervention exceptionally high.