Preventing Diabetes in Latino Youth

Principal Investigator: Gabriel Q. Shaibi

Funding: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases R01DK107579 (2015-2020)

Obesity and type 2 diabetes are major public health challenges that disproportionately impact Latino youth. To address these challenges, Dr. Shaibi (PI) and Dr. Colleen Keller (Co-PI) were awarded a 5-year grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to test the efficacy of a culturally-grounded, lifestyle intervention program for reducing diabetes risk in obese Latino adolescents with prediabetes. Collaborating institutions include Phoenix Children's Hospital and the University of Washington who will partner with the St. Vincent de Paul Medical and Dental Clinic and the Valley of the Sun YMCA to carry out the study. This new study builds upon ongoing work that has been supported by SIRC since 2009 and addresses critical gaps in how diabetes prevention interventions for obese Latino youth are developed, implemented and evaluated. This innovative approach is an essential step in the development of scalable, cost-effective, solution- oriented programs to prevent type 2 diabetes in this and other populations of high-risk youth.