Diabetes
Diabetes is a lifelong condition where your body does not produce
enough insulin, or your body cannot properly use the insulin it
produces. Your body needs insulin to change the sugar from food
into energy. With diabetes, the sugar stays in your blood so that
your blood sugar level gets too high. High blood sugar levels over
long periods of time can cause complications such as damage to
blood vessels and kidneys and difficulties with circulation.
There are three main types of diabetes:
- type 1, where the body makes little or no
insulin;
- type 2, where the body makes insulin but
cannot use it properly (nine out of ten people with diabetes
have type 2); and
- gestational diabetes, where the body is not
able to properly use insulin during pregnancy. This type of diabetes
goes away after the baby is born.
Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative
Rates of diabetes among Aboriginal people in Canada are three
to five times higher than those of the general Canadian population.
Aboriginal children are also now being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes,
a condition that in the past occurred mainly in older persons.
Inuit rates of diabetes are not as high as those of other Aboriginal
populations; however, there is concern that the rates of type 2
diabetes are increasing among Inuit as well.
The Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative is designed to provide a more
comprehensive, collaborative and integrated approach to decreasing
diabetes and its
complications among Aboriginal peoples. The program is overseen
by a national steering committee with representation from the national
Aboriginal representative organizations (Assembly of First Nations,
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, Métis National
Council, Congress of Aboriginal Peoples, Native Women's Association
of Canada) as well as the National Aboriginal Diabetes Association.
The program is divided into two components, each with a separate
framework and funding formula.
First Nations On-reserve and Inuit in Inuit Communities Program
(FNOIIC)
The FNOIIC program is administered through the regional offices
in partnership with First Nations and Inuit in the region. Through
the FNOIIC program, the ADI will ensure access to prevention and
promotion, care and treatment, and lifestyle support programs for
First Nations on-reserve and Inuit living in Inuit communities.
For information on regional programming, contact
the Regional Program Offices.
Métis, Off-reserve Aboriginal
and Urban Inuit Prevention and Promotion Program
The Métis,
Off-reserve Aboriginal and Urban Inuit Prevention and Promotion
(MOAUIPP) Program provides funding for diabetes primary prevention
and health promotion programs. The MOAUIPP program is intended
to serve Métis, off-reserve Aboriginal
and urban Inuit who will access diabetes primary prevention and
health promotion programming, and want these programs to be culturally
appropriate.
The ADI has been developed in partnership with Aboriginal people.
Programs which emphasize holistic approaches and strive to be culturally
appropriate are now in place across the country. Aboriginal people
are involved in all stages of development, implementation and program
maintenance.
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