Our research developed diabetes education courses
Type 1 course: DAFNE
Life with type 1 diabetes is complicated. Too much insulin means low blood sugar levels and hypos. Too little means high blood sugar levels and hypers.
But with most people living with type 1 diabetes usually seeing a healthcare professional only once or twice a year, the full-time job of thinking like a pancreas falls to them or the person caring for them.
Dr Sue Roberts and Professors Simon Heller and Stephanie Amiel knew how important it was to give people with type 1 diabetes the tools to self-manage their condition.
In 2000, with our funding, they developed and tested a life-changing education course, Dose Adjustment for Normal Eating, known as DAFNE.
DAFNE helps people learn to adjust their insulin doses depending on what they eat, their activity level, illness and the many other factors that can affect blood sugars.
The first trial showed DAFNE reduced average blood sugar (HbA1c) levels by 10mmol/mol (1%), and people who went on the course had fewer and less serious hypos.
People also said DAFNE helped them feel less anxious and stressed managing their diabetes which helped improve their quality of life.
With such positive results, we successfully campaigned for DAFNE to be delivered nationwide.
Fatmata Lee lives with type 1 diabetes and attended a DAFNE course shortly after she was diagnosed in 2019. She said:
“I learnt so much on the DAFNE course, and it gave me the confidence to manage my diabetes. For the first time, I felt normal in my new normal. It was so reassuring being in a room with fellow type 1’s who know what you’re going through and can give you advice. That was invaluable.”
Professor Stephanie Amiel, King’s College London, who co-created DAFNE, said:
“People find the course hugely rewarding. They report how it changes their life for the better and has been the most valuable time they’ve ever spent in relation to their diabetes. Diabetes UK’s support for the original DAFNE trial made it all possible.”
Type 2 course: DESMOND
Living with type 2 diabetes is relentless, demanding daily decisions about food, activity, and medication, often with limited time and support. That’s why programmes like DESMOND are so important.
Developed at the Leicester Diabetes Centre, DESMOND recognises that people with type 2 are the experts in managing their condition. It provides the practical tools and support to find what works for them. DESMOND has supported over 800,000 people to gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to manage type 2 - and improve their long-term health.
A small pilot study in 2006 showed DESMOND's early promise, leading us to fund a large UK-wide clinical trial involving 824 people - still one of the largest studies of its kind. It showed that DESMOND helped people feel more positive about managing their condition, including through becoming more active.
The trial helped pave the way for the roll out of an NHS national programme, alongside another version for people who’d lived with type 2 diabetes for longer.
Alison Northern, DESMOND Implementation Lead at Leicester Diabetes Centre, has been working on the programme for 20 years. She said:
“It’s amazing to see the positive impact DESMOND has had. I’m extremely proud of how we’ve established DESMOND throughout the UK, and across the world. We work hard to keep the programme evolving to meet the changing needs of people with or at risk of diabetes”.
In 2020, DEMOND went digital with an online version MyDESMOND, which has already supported over 65,000 people.
Our research has continued to evolve DESMOND, adapting it to the needs of underserved groups, and those with more complex health conditions. To explore how our research has shaped Desmond into what is is today, read our DESMOND news story.
What’s next?
We know living with the relentlessness of diabetes isn’t just about managing physical wellbeing, so one of our priority research areas in our Research Strategy 2025-2030 is Supporting Wellbeing.
We will fund research under this priority to:
- Reduce diabetes stigma.
- Prevent mental health issues after diabetes diagnosis.
- Enable emotionally informed diabetes healthcare.
