City of Mississauga Will Become the Newest Member of the Cities Changing Diabetes Programme

Today at General Committee, Council received the corporate report to become a member of Cities Changing Diabetes (CCD). CCD enables cities to understand their own urban diabetes challenge, to set their own unique goals to lower Type 2 diabetes in their city and to work to unite stakeholders behind a common cause. The programme will run over the next three to five years and will provide the City with tools, resources and partners to prevent the rise of Type 2 diabetes in Mississauga. By 2024, it is projected that there will be more than 100,000 new diabetes cases in Peel Region. Mississauga is the only Canadian municipality participating in the CCD Programme.

“Type 2 diabetes is affecting a growing number of residents in Mississauga. Incident cases of diabetes in Peel Region have increased by 182 per cent between 1996 and 2015. As it stands, one in six adults living in Peel Region, ages 45 to 64, has this preventable disease, rising to one in three after age 65. This is significantly higher than the provincial average. This is putting an added strain on our public health agencies and healthcare systems. The projected healthcare cost of diabetes in Peel Region is estimated to be $689 million in 2024,” said Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “As a City, we’ve committed to take action to protect the health and well-being of our residents, provide supports and resources for those living with the disease and assist in preventing and reducing the rise of Type 2 diabetes in Mississauga. Later this fall, I will be formally signing the Urban Diabetes Declaration and I am proud to be the first Canadian mayor to sign this declaration.”

Approximately, 53.6 per cent of Peel Region residents are overweight or obese, which is the single, biggest risk factor for developing Type 2 diabetes. Additionally, 51.3 per cent of adults in Peel Region identify as Asian, South Asian, Arab, Black, Hispanic and Indigenous – representing ethnic groups that are at an increased risk of getting Type 2 diabetes.

“As the only Canadian municipality in the CCD Programme, the City of Mississauga will have access to information and knowledge about the challenges associated with urban diabetes. Key insights, global findings and local learnings will allow us to develop a meaningful plan with community-based actions and solutions to lower the rate of Type 2 diabetes in Peel – which is 40 per cent higher than the rest of Ontario,” said Paul Mitcham, City Manager and Chief Administrative Officer. “Another key factor is that Mississauga is also home to the second-largest Life Sciences business cluster in Canada. Many of these businesses provide products, technologies and services in diabetes care and treatment.”

The City, through its various departments, has implemented numerous programs and initiatives that contribute to healthy living and diabetes prevention.

“Our goal is to help bring down disease rates by focusing on reducing obesity and increasing disease prevention to limit the rise of Type 2 diabetes cases in our community. The City has undertaken a number of initiatives to address this including adopting the Region of Peel’s six Core Elements of the built environment that impact health,” said Robert Trewartha, Director of Strategic Initiatives. “Mayor Crombie also hosted two webinars that engaged community stakeholders on how to tackle high rates of diabetes and put health at the centre of City policies to support a healthier society. Additionally, the City has also rolled out many initiatives including a Healthy Food & Beverage Policy for Recreation facilities, continues to promote active transportation and healthy lifestyles and offers a wide variety of fitness and wellness programs.”

The City will work with key stakeholders to implement CCD in Mississauga.

CCD launched in 2014 by the Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, University College London and Novo Nordisk to address the growth of Type 2 diabetes and obesity. Today, the programme has established local partnerships in 37 cities around the world, with the potential to reach more than 175 million individuals to help prevent and control urban diabetes.

The Cities Changing Diabetes corporate report will go to Council for final approval on June 16, 2021.

For more information about Type 2 diabetes in Mississauga, visit mississauga.ca/projects-and-strategies/city-projects/cities-changing-diabetes-programme/.

BACKGROUND:

About Novo Nordisk
Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company, founded in 1923 and headquartered in Denmark. Their purpose is to drive change to defeat diabetes and other serious chronic diseases such as obesity and rare blood and endocrine disorders. They do so by pioneering scientific breakthroughs, expanding access to medicines, and working to prevent and ultimately cure disease. Novo Nordisk employs about 45,800 people in 80 countries and markets its products in around 170 countries. Based in Mississauga, Ontario Canada, Novo Nordisk approached the City of Mississauga to join CCD.

In February, the City welcomed a new research hub in Mississauga, funded by Novo Nordisk and the University of Toronto (U of T), aimed at reducing diabetes in the community. The new research hub, located at U of T’s Mississauga campus, will bring leading public health experts together to help reduce global diseases and illnesses like diabetes.

Novo Nordisk and the University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM), have invested $40 million to establish the Novo Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations at the UTM campus to address the rise in chronic diseases and diabetes.

About Cities Changing Diabetes
Cities Changing Diabetes is a first-of-its-kind partnership programme with an ambitious global goal to reduce obesity by 25 per cent so that only 1 in 10 people live with diabetes by 2045. More than 100 local partners – including city leaders and ministries, academia, diabetes associations, health insurers, community groups and business corporations – collaborate across disciplines and in new forms of public–private partnerships to map the diabetes problem, share solutions and drive actions to bend the curve on urban diabetes. The programme was initiated in 2014 by three global partners: University College London, Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen and Novo Nordisk. Today, 17 cities representing more than 130 million citizens are active partners: Beijing, Beirut, Buenos Aires, Copenhagen, Hangzhou, Houston, Jakarta, Johannesburg, Koriyama, Leicester, Mérida, Mexico City, Rome, Shanghai, Tianjin, Vancouver and Xiamen. For more information, visit citieschangingdiabetes.com.

Tags

• Economic Development
• Health and Wellness
• Older Adults and Seniors