Living in an Increasingly Diabetic World

As many sectors of the industry have already known for a handful of years, today’s approach to managing diabetes is much different than those of yesteryear. And as noted in a piece in today’s Chicago Tribune, this knowledge is particularly poignant these days as the number of people afflicted with the disease continues to grow to unprecedented highs. The article reports that 4,100 new cases of diabetes are diagnosed every day in this country.

The tandem revisions to diabetic dietary guidelines and a growing diabetic population directly translate into more opportunities for formulators to contribute a wider range of new products (and, as a side concern, perhaps to expand the number of satiety-oriented and weight-controlling products to help stem that growing number...).

As the Trib article notes, not all diabetic foods need be sugar-free or otherwise adhere to the old set of rules (the piece centers on a new edition of a book on the subject). Consumers need are updated products that better manage carbohydrates overall rather than just cutting them back. (To learn more about how to get aligned with the new diabetic consumer, check out a still-recent piece on the subject from the magazine.)

Now, getting into this game with today’s tight budgets is another matter... However, savvy budget balancers might find that digging into this demographic might help offset any potential losses from other ends of the playing field.