Pills vs. Programs

By Quinn Phillips It has often been observed that our health-care system is designed, first and foremost, to provide treatment for acute conditions — that is, conditions that can be treated and cured, leaving the patient healthy until the next illness or malady comes along. Chronic conditions such as Type 2 diabetes and obesity often receive less attention than they deserve, given that they account for a large share of health-care costs in the United States and many other industrialized countries. For example, many insurance plans will cover only a few hours of diabetes education, while fully covering amputations due to diabetic complications — potentially spending more money than they would if they could reduce diabetic complications by covering intensive diabetes education. As health-care costs have grown in recent years, researchers and policymakers have been interested in studying the potential costs and benefits of lifestyle-intervention programs. One such study, focused on weight loss, was recently conducted by researchers at the Duke–National University of Singapore Medical School. Published in the journal Obesity, the study compared the costs and effectiveness of various weight-loss programs and prescription weight-loss drugs. As noted in an ABC News article on the study, it included programs and drugs with proven weight-loss benefits a year after beginning the treatment. Programs included were Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, and now-defunct Vtrim; dru...
Source: Diabetes Self-Management - Category: Diabetes Authors: Source Type: blogs