World Diabetes Day Unites Global Diabetes Community and Raises Awareness for Improved Diabetes Education and Prevention
By Adam Brown
On November 14, World Diabetes Day was commemorated at 574 blue-lit monuments around the world. The annual event is meant to be a rallying experience for the global diabetes community, illustrated by lighting buildings and monuments in the distinctive blue of the diabetes circle, the universally recognized symbol for diabetes. The November 14 date commemorates the birthday of Dr. Frederick Banting, the Canadian medical scientist and Nobel laureate who co-discovered insulin in the 1920s. We were glad to take part in the festivities at San Francisco's blue-lit Ferry Building, and we send big thanks to JDRF for organizing and for so many outstanding patient advocacy organizations present: ADA, Diabetes Hands Foundation, CarbDM, Diabetes and Sports Health Camps, and so many others. We are especially thankful for sponsors LifeScan, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi Diabetes – without them, the gathering and blue lighting would not have been possible. The highlights of the night were a captivating performance by Velocity Circus and a 14-minute dancing Big Blue Test led by the Diabetes Hands Foundation's Manny Hernandez. –AW/AB
