On Saturday, June 10, the Exercise Professional Interest Group session The New Physical Activity/Exercise Guidelines for Diabetes (11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.) will illustrate how rapidly science and policy are evolving in the Behavioral Medicine, Clinical Nutrition, Education, and Exercise theme area.
“This will be a first detailed look at these new guidelines for many of us, presented by the lead author,” said the Scientific Sessions Meeting Planning Committee member in the area of exercise, John Kirwan, MSc, PhD, Professor of Molecular Medicine and Director of the Metabolic Translational Research Center at the Cleveland Clinic. “These are the best recommendations we can all work with, based on the latest science.”

John Kirwan, MSc, PhD
Dr. Kirwan’s highlighted several other exercise-related sessions:
11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Friday, June 9
Exercise for Type 1 Diabetes
“We will explore considerations in managing glucose control during and, critically, after exercise to avoid hypoglycemic events, and the implications for exercising with the artificial pancreas.”
2:15 p.m.–4:15 p.m. Sunday, June 11
Exercise and Diabetes Complications
“We are focusing on how exercise interventions can help facilitate the management and treatment of diabetes-related complications such as peripheral artery disease, peripheral neuropathy, cardiorespiratory fitness, and diabetic retinopathy.”
4:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m. Monday, June 12
Exercise-Induced Mediators of Metabolism and Type 2 Diabetes
“This will be an exciting and innovative session in the exercise area. The focus is on myokines, proteins secreted from muscle or other tissues in response to exercise. These factors target organs other than their tissue of origin and modulate insulin resistance, glucose metabolism, exercise capacity, and other properties.”
Clinical Nutrition
“We have exciting and timely sessions on science and policy,” said the Scientific Sessions Meeting Planning Committee member in the area of clinical nutrition, Elizabeth J. Mayer-Davis, PhD, the Cary C. Boshamer Distinguished Professor of Nutrition and Medicine, and Chair in Nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “The combination is particularly important now because policy has to be driven by science.”

Elizabeth J. Mayer-Davis, PhD
One session that Dr. Mayer-Davis highlighted on Monday’s schedule is titled Personalized Nutrition—Nutrigenetics, Nutrigenomics—Relevance to Diabetes (8:00 a.m.–10:00 a.m.). She said the key message is that individual variation in response to diet and nutrition means there’s not a single, best diet for all people with diabetes. Rather, optimal dietary intake varies across individuals.
“Genetic and epigenetic effects can change how nutrients impact our metabolic processes,” she explained. “These nutrigenetic and nutrigenomic factors can help us understand the different ways people respond to diet.”
On the policy side, Dr. Mayer-Davis highlighted a Saturday session titled Population Health, Affordable Care Act (ACA), and New Approaches for Dissemination/Implementation of the Diabetes Prevention Program (4:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.).
“We will have accounts from the trenches of the DPP, as well as a look at the impact of Medicare on the DPP and overcoming barriers to enrollment,” she said.
Here are Dr. Mayer-Davis’ other session picks:
11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Saturday
Eating Behaviors in Type 1 Diabetes
“The person with type 1 diabetes has to consider what they eat in very specific ways to manage their blood sugar. That need can create eating behaviors that might make it more difficult to ensure a diet optimized for a healthy weight.”
2:15 p.m.–4:15 p.m. Monday
Pairing Nutrition and Exercise in Type 1 Diabetes
“There can be concerns about the practical issues of maintaining glycemic control and avoiding hypoglycemia with exercise. We will be looking at the role of nutrition in the impact of exercise on glycemia, as well as exercise and nutrition in the context of an artificial pancreas system.
Diabetes Education
Looking for evidence that more effective diabetes education can reduce hospital readmission rates? Saturday’s symposium Reducing Hospital Readmissions—Effective Transitions Matter (1:45 p.m.–3:45 p.m.) will highlight effective strategies to address the gaps in communication and education that often lead to readmissions.
“We know that the cost of diabetes is high from both a personal and societal perspective,” said the Scientific Sessions Planning Committee member in the area of diabetes education, Gayle M. Lorenzi, RN, CDE, Community Health Project Manager at the University of California, San Diego. “One of the drivers is readmissions — readmissions that are oftentimes preceded by limited instruction in the inpatient area, lack of accurate or complete information, lack of supplies, and inability to see a provider in a timely manner. Improving the transition between inpatient and outpatient can reduce readmissions as it improves overall care and improves the patient’s functional status and quality of life.”

Gayle M. Lorenzi, RN, CDE
Here are the other sessions Dr. Lorenzi highlighted:
4:30 p.m.–6:30 p.m. Sunday
Using Technology to Improve Performance Outcomes and Care
“Effective use of technology can make a significant difference for both providers and patients. From titration intervention using text messaging to achieving pay-for-performance standards, creating incentive payment programs that work, and using apps to improve provider performance — technology can make a positive difference.”
8:00 a.m.–10:00 a.m. Monday
Digital Data—Clinical Liability and Patient Safety
“Healthcare providers are amassing mounds and mounds of data with all the digital feeds that are coming to their offices. The FDA has guidance on how we use digital data, our e-patients have expectations, and we, healthcare providers, have to figure out how to manage it all.”
7:30 a.m.–9:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 13
Cognitive Decline—Recognizing and Adapting Diabetes Care Strategies
“People with diabetes are living longer. We must adapt diabetes care and self-management strategies to deal with the realities of aging in the presence of evolving cognitive decline and physical challenges to maximize success.”