Results of a pilot diabetes prevention intervention in East Harlem, New York City: Project HEED.
OBJECTIVE
Our community-academic partnership employed community-based participatory research to develop and pilot a simple, peer-led intervention to promote weight loss, which can prevent diabetes and eliminate racial/ethnic disparities in incident diabetes among overweight adults with prediabetes.


METHODS
We recruited overweight adults at community sites, performed oral glucose tolerance testing to identify persons with blood glucose levels in the prediabetes range, and randomized eligible people to a peer-led lifestyle intervention group or delayed intervention in 1 year. Outcomes, including weight, blood pressure, and health behaviors, were measured at baseline and 3, 6, and 12 months.


RESULTS
More than half of those tested (56%, or 99 of 178) had prediabetes and enrolled in the study. Participants were predominantly Spanish-speaking, low-income, undereducated women. The intervention group lost significantly more weight than the control group and maintained weight loss at 12 months (7.2 versus 2.4 pounds; P < .01). One fourth (24 of 99) of participants progressed to diabetes.


CONCLUSIONS
In underserved minority communities, prediabetes prevalence may be higher than previously reported. Low-cost, community-based interventions can succeed in encouraging weight loss to prevent diabetes.
Department of Health Evidence and Policy, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Punam
P
Parikh
Ellen P
EP
Simon
Kezhen
K
Fei
Helen
H
Looker
Crispin
C
Goytia
Carol R
CR
Horowitz
D000368:Aged; D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000208:ethnology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009519:New York City; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015397:Program Evaluation