“En Balance” Program Successfully Improves Blood Glucose Control and Body Composition in Hispanics with Type 2 Diabetes

O: Assess the impact of a culturally‐appropriate diabetes education program for Hispanics with diabetes. M: Subjects participated in a 3‐month study. Blood glucose, cholesterol levels, anthropometric and DXA values were obtained at baseline and 3‐months. Paired t‐tests were used to compare baseline and 3‐month means. Group 1 (n=34) finished the study 2 years before Group 2 (n=26). R: Group 1 (n=34) had a baseline mean age of 52yrs ±9.56, mean wt of 81.25kg ±17.91, and mean BMI of 32.18kg/m 2 ±7.02. In both genders, %HbA1c (7.87 ± 0.2 vs. 7.08 ± 1.6, p≤0.001), fasting blood glucose mg/dL (166 ± 65.9 vs. 143.21 ± 57.8, p=0.003), leptin μg/mL (19.55 ± 14.9 vs. 16.34 ± 12.6, p=0.002), body wt(kg) (81.22 ± 17.90 vs. 80.31 ± 17.95, p=0.015), & total body fat(kg) (30.41 ± 10.68 vs. 29.50 ± 10.52, p≤0.001) decreased. Group 2 (n=26) had a baseline mean age of 54yrs ± 12.7, mean wt of 81.9kg ± 16.3, and mean BMI of 31.3kg/m 2 ± 6.5. In both genders, %HbA1c (8.5% ±2.3 vs. 7.6% ±1.6 p=.007) & hip circumference (cm) decreased (107.2 ±14 vs. 105.8 ±13 p=.044). C: The En Balance Diabetes Education Program improved blood glucose control and body composition in Hispanics with Type 2 diabetes.