NHS and Sweatcoin partner to roll out expanded diabetes prevention programme
Health and fitness app to tackle £10billion-a-year crisis
- Prevention Programme trial reveals 85% of participants were likely to lose an average of 3kg, with one in 10 losing 10% of their body weight
- Patients increased their daily step count by 45% between the start and end of the programme
- Participant retention rate of 92% vs industry averages of <50%
South West London Integrated Care System, in collaboration with Richmond and Wandsworth Public Health and Sweatcoin, has announced the expansion of the Prevention Decathlon Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Programme following a successful trial.
Type 2 Diabetes is a serious health condition affecting 4.6 million Brits every year.
And increasing complications currently cost the NHS around £10billion a year.
It is a condition whereby a person’s blood sugar levels continue to rise because their body is unable to produce enough insulin, in turn also often leading to obesity.
Research shows that if you are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, you are more likely to have cardiovascular disease, which can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
Diabetes UK estimates that diabetes is the cause of over 30,000 heart attacks and 40,000 strokes annually in the UK.
A significant breakthrough
In order to help tackle and prevent Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, members across the South West of London are being prescribed rewards per step in the form of a prevention programme.
Following a trial of the programme, Dipti Gandhi, South West London ICS primary care clinical lead for diabetes, revealed: “The results of this trial are a significant breakthrough in the field of diabetes prevention and I’m excited to see it being rolled out more permanently.
“Incentivising individuals to engage in regular physical activity has the potential to revolutionise the way we approach diabetes prevention; contributing towards reducing NHS waiting times and costs.
“And this successful trial highlights the power of technology and innovative approaches in promoting healthy lifestyles and we hope to see more initiatives like this in the healthcare industry.
“Taking the results and learnings from the trial and putting them into practice, in partnership with the NHS, is a huge step forward in reducing the number of people being diagnosed with diabetes on a daily basis.”
Proven success
With The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) estimating that more than five million people in the UK will be diagnosed with diabetes by 2025, and the World Obesity Federation predicting that more than half of the world’s population will be overweight or obese by 2035, tackling the disease is a key priority for the NHS.
However, waiting lists in England for illness relating to cardiology are currently 13.3 weeks long as over 350,000 people wait – almost double what it was in April 2018.
The successful trial of 70 patients, with an average age of 56 years and including 74% participation from ethnic minorities, saw people lose 3kg in weight on average.
And the results show that of all those that take part, 85% are likely to lose weight, with one in 10 of those likely to lose 10% of their body weight.
One participant, in particular, lost 10.3kg, 16% of their total body weight, during the 10-week programme.
In terms of movement, patients increased their daily step count by 45% between the start and end of the programme, while one moved a staggering 336% more than before the trial.
This is particularly interesting given that lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of diabetes by about 40% and is proven to prevent 4% of high-risk individuals developing Type 2 diabetes each year.
Anton Derlyatka, chief executive and co-founder of Sweatcoin, said: “Our aim has always been to empower individuals to make healthier and better lifestyle choices.
“We are thrilled this trial was a success and that we can launch the programme to a wider audience, potentially helping millions of people globally.
“The impressive trial results have only strengthened our belief that Sweatcoin will play an important role in supporting the healthcare sector.”