AstraZeneca, Diabetes Hands Foundation Partner to Help Adults with Type 2 Diabetes Walk Their Way to Better Health
Everyday Steps offers resources to help start and stick with walking
routine
WILMINGTON, Del.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–AstraZeneca and the Diabetes Hands Foundation today announced the launch
of Everyday Steps, a new campaign designed to help the nearly 28
million Americans with type 2 diabetes1 develop and maintain
a walking routine – one step at a time.
Serge Jabbour, M.D., FACP, FACE, endocrinologist, Thomas Jefferson
University Hospital, Philadelphia said: “When I work with patients, I
emphasize the importance of lifestyle modifications, but many people
find incorporating exercise into their treatment plan challenging.
Walking is a great example of an accessible exercise that can lead to
benefits, along with diet and medication.”
The Everyday Steps walking guide, at www.everydaystepsguide.com,
features tips to help participants create a walking routine. Tips in the
walking guide include:
- Setting goals and tracking your progress
- Inviting a friend to walk with you
- Making a song list on your smartphone or MP3 player
- Rewarding yourself with something healthy after each walk
- Exploring different types of walking (e.g. power walking, lunges)
Cynthia Rogers, community manager for TuDiabetes.org said: “Exercise is
recognized by TuDiabetes members as an important part of healthful
living with diabetes. How exercise helps improve diabetes management is
a popular topic in our online forum, especially among adults living with
type 2. But many find it difficult to know how to start and keep the
exercise habit going. The Everyday Steps guide provides a lot of
useful information about how to individualize a walking routine so that
it fits a person’s preferences and lifestyle. And that’s key for
long-term success.”
Before beginning a fitness program like Everyday Steps, people
should consult a healthcare professional.
Topher Brooke, Vice President, Diabetes, AstraZeneca said: “A successful
type 2 diabetes treatment plan not only includes medication, but
lifestyle and behavior modifications like diet and exercise. Our aim is
to offer people the tools and resources that will help empower them to
manage their disease in a variety of ways.”
Everyday Steps was codeveloped by AstraZeneca, maker of FARXIGA®
(dapagliflozin), and the Diabetes Hands Foundation. FARXIGA is
a prescription medicine used along with diet and exercise to lower blood
sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes. FARXIGA should not be used to
treat people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis (increased
ketones in your blood or urine).
Important Safety Information
Who should not take FARXIGA?
Do not take FARXIGA if you:
-
are allergic to dapagliflozin or any of the ingredients in FARXIGA.
Symptoms of a serious allergic reaction to FARXIGA may include skin
rash, raised red patches on your skin (hives), swelling of the face,
lips, tongue, and throat that may cause difficulty in breathing or
swallowing. If you have any of these symptoms, stop taking FARXIGA and
contact your healthcare provider or go to the nearest hospital
emergency room right away. -
have severe kidney problems or are on dialysis. Your healthcare
provider should do blood tests to check how well your kidneys are
working before and during your treatment with FARXIGA.
What are the possible side effects of FARXIGA?
FARXIGA may cause serious side effects including:
-
Dehydration (the loss of body water and salt), which may
cause you to feel dizzy, faint, lightheaded, or weak, especially when
you stand up (orthostatic hypotension). You may be at a higher risk of
dehydration if you have low blood pressure, take medicines to lower
your blood pressure, including water pills (diuretics), are 65 years
of age or older, are on a low salt diet, or have kidney problems. -
Ketoacidosis, a condition where the body produces high levels
of acids called ketones, which can be life threatening and require
hospitalization, has happened in people with type 1 diabetes or type 2
diabetes during treatment with FARXIGA. Symptoms of ketoacidosis may
include nausea, tiredness, vomiting, trouble breathing, and stomach
area (abdominal) pain. If you get any of these symptoms, stop taking
FARXIGA and call your healthcare provider right away. If possible,
check for ketones in your urine or blood, even if your blood sugar is
less than 250 mg/dL. -
Serious urinary tract infections (UTI), some that lead to
hospitalization, have happened in people taking FARXIGA. Tell your
doctor if you have any signs or symptoms of UTI including a burning
feeling when passing urine, a need to urinate often, the need to
urinate right away, pain in the lower part of your stomach (pelvis),
or blood in the urine with or without fever, back pain, nausea or
vomiting. -
Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) can occur if you take FARXIGA
with another medicine that can cause low blood sugar, such as
sulfonylureas or insulin. Symptoms of low blood sugar include shaking,
sweating, fast heartbeat, dizziness, hunger, headache and
irritability. Follow your healthcare provider’s instructions for
treating low blood sugar. -
Vaginal yeast infections in women who take FARXIGA. Talk to
your healthcare provider if you experience vaginal odor, white or
yellowish vaginal discharge (discharge may be lumpy or look like
cottage cheese), or vaginal itching. -
Yeast infection of skin around the penis (balanitis) in men who
take FARXIGA. Talk to your healthcare provider if you experience
redness, itching, or swelling of the penis; rash of the penis; foul
smelling discharge from the penis; or pain in the skin around penis.
Certain uncircumcised men may have swelling of the penis that makes it
difficult to pull back the skin around the tip of the penis. -
Increase in bad cholesterol (LDL-C). Your healthcare provider
should check your LDL-C during treatment with FARXIGA. -
Bladder cancer. In studies of FARXIGA in people with diabetes,
bladder cancer occurred in a few more people who were taking FARXIGA
than in people who were taking other diabetes medications. There were
too few cases of bladder cancer to know if bladder cancer was related
to FARXIGA. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have blood
or a red color in your urine or pain while you urinate. - Kidney problems
The most common side effects of FARXIGA include yeast infections
of the vagina or penis, and changes in urination, including urgent need
to urinate more often, in larger amounts, or at night.
What should I tell my healthcare provider before taking FARXIGA?
Before you take FARXIGA, tell your healthcare provider:
-
all of your medical conditions, including problems with your
kidneys, bladder, or pancreas. -
if you have had, or have risk factors for, ketoacidosis (including
type 1 diabetes, are eating less due to illness, surgery, or a change
in your diet, are going to have surgery, or binge drink). - if you are pregnant. FARXIGA may harm your unborn baby.
-
if you are breastfeeding, or plan to breastfeed. It is unknown
if FARXIGA passes into your breast milk. -
about all the medicines you take, including prescription and
nonprescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements.
What is FARXIGA?
FARXIGA is a prescription medicine used along with diet and exercise to
lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes.
FARXIGA should not be used to treat people with type 1 diabetes or
diabetic ketoacidosis (increased ketones in your blood or urine).
Please see full Prescribing
Information and Medication
Guide for FARXIGA.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription
drugs to the FDA. Visit www.FDA.gov/medwatch or
call 1-800-FDA-1088.
NOTES TO EDITORS
About Type 2 Diabetes
Diabetes is estimated to affect 29.1 million people in the United States1
and more than 382 million people worldwide.2 The
prevalence of diabetes is projected to reach more than 471 million
people worldwide by 2035.2 Type 2 diabetes accounts for
approximately 90-95 percent of all cases of diagnosed diabetes in the
United States.1 Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease
characterized by pathophysiologic defects leading to elevated glucose
levels.2,3 Significant unmet needs still exist, as many
patients remain inadequately controlled on their current
glucose-lowering regimen.4 It is estimated that more than
half of people living with type 2 diabetes are not achieving recommended
HbA1c goals based on guidelines established by professional societies
and advocacy organizations for diabetes management.5
About AstraZeneca in Diabetes
AstraZeneca is pushing the boundaries of science with the goal of
developing life-changing medicines that aim to reduce the global burden
and complications of diabetes. Our commitment to diabetes is exemplified
by the depth and breadth of our global clinical research program.
AstraZeneca is committed to advancing understanding of the treatment
effects of our diabetes medicines in broad patient populations, as well
as exploring combination treatment approaches to help more patients
achieve treatment success earlier in their disease progression. Our
ambition is to reduce the long-term impact of diabetes. As a core
strategic area for the company, we are focusing our research and
development efforts in diverse populations and patients with significant
co-morbidities, such as cardiovascular disease, heart failure, obesity,
non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and chronic kidney disease.
About AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven biopharmaceutical business
that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of
prescription medicines, primarily for the treatment of diseases in three
main therapy areas – respiratory, inflammation, autoimmune disease
(RIA), cardiovascular and metabolic disease (CVMD) and oncology – as
well as in infection and neuroscience. AstraZeneca operates in over 100
countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients
worldwide. For more information please visit www.astrazeneca-us.com.
1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National
Diabetes Statistics Report, 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/statsreport14/national-diabetes-report-web.pdf.
Accessed August 12, 2014.
2 International Diabetes
Federation. IDF Diabetes Atlas, 6th ed. Brussels, Belgium: International
Diabetes Federation; 2013. http://www.idf.org/diabetesatlas.
Accessed November 26, 2013.
3 Kahn SE. The relative
contributions of insulin resistance and beta-cell dysfunction to the
pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes. Diabetologia. 2003;46:3-19.
4
Cheung B, Lond E, Ong KL, et al. Diabetes prevalence and therapeutic
target achievement in the United States, 1999-2006. Am J Med.
2009;122:443-453.
5 Cook M.N., et al. Initial
monotherapy with either metformin or sulphonylureas often fails to
achieve or maintain current glycaemic goals in patients with type 2
diabetes in UK primary care. Diabetic Med 2007:24;350-358.
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Contacts
AstraZeneca
Abby Bozarth, 302-885-2677
or
AstraZeneca
Jessica
Attanasio, 215-542-3409
