Effects of Lifestyle Education Programs on Diabetes Control in Rwanda

Strategies to reduce the burden of diabetes in Rwanda, like in other resource poor settings, include involving diabetic patients in their own care and targeting modifiable risk factors through adopting appropriate dietary and lifestyle habits. According to previous research carried out in developed countries, lifestyle modifications may have effect on the development of diabetes and prevention of its complications. However, direct evidence to show whether lifestyle intervention is beneficial for diabetic patients in resources limited countries like Rwanda is an open question. Though in these countries, access to healthy diet is claimed to be the barrier of implementation of therapeutic lifestyle based initiatives, we hypothesize that knowledge gaps are more important barriers than access to healthier diets and other lifestyle habits. We therefore would like to carry out this intervention to assess the effects of lifestyle education programs on glycemic control among people with diabetes followed up at CHUK.