U.S. diabetes rate levels off, but not for all

Overall adult diabetes rates appear to have leveled off during the past four years in the United States, in stark contrast to the two decades prior, which saw a doubling of the chronic disease, according to a new federal study.

The total number of people living with diabetes increased an average 0.6 percent annually between 2008 and 2012 while the number of new cases actually fell an average 5.4 percent, researchers for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported. That compared with an average 4.5 percent annual increase between 1990 and 2008, they said.

Not all groups in the United States have benefited, however. Diabetes rates continue to rise for blacks, Hispanics, the aging and the poorly educated, according to the report published in the Sept. 24 Journal of the American Medical Association.  http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-diabetes-rate-levels-off-but-not-for-all/

Report Identifies Game Changers for U.S. Health Care

Imagine if doctors and hospitals got paid for providing better care, not more care, and consumers had better data for making informed health choices.

A new report suggests that's the direction the U.S. health system is headed.

The report, from the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics in Parsippany, N.J., identifies 10 "harbingers of change" -- recent events expected to alter the delivery of health care and use of medicines over the next decade.

The authors concede that poor adoption of new technologies, worries about data privacy and other obstacles could slow the pace of change, but their long-term outlook for patient care is hopeful.

"I think there can be optimism about the effectiveness of the care [patients] receive and even the cost of it," said Murray Aitken, executive director of the institute, as well as one of the study's authors.

One indication of what lies ahead: the entry of such technology juggernauts as Apple, Google and Samsung into the health care marketplace, according to the report.  http://consumer.healthday.com/general-health-information-16/doctor-news-206/report-identifies-health-care-game-changers-691988.html

Soda giants to cut calories 20% by 2025

Imagine the nation's beverage behemoths essentially asking folks to drink fewer sugary soft drinks — not more.

On Tuesday (9/23), Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Dr Pepper Snapple Group came close to that by announcing a shared goal to reduce the number of beverage calories consumed per person nationally by 20% by 2025.

The move, announced at the Clinton Global Initiative, does not reduce the actual calories in a 12-ounce can of conventional soda, which is about 150 calories. Instead, the beverage companies pledged to take specific actions to reduce soft drink calorie consumption — like selling smaller portion sizes and increasing promotion of products such as bottled water.

The companies jointly pledged to provide calorie counts and promote calorie awareness on the vending machines, fountain dispensers and retail coolers that they control nationwide.  http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/09/23/soft-drinks-beverages-coca-cola-pepsico-dr-pepper-snapple/16097945/