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Blue Landmark Buildings and Expert Tips for World Diabetes Day

On World Diabetes Day, which takes place every year on November 14th, iconic buildings throughout the world are illuminated with blue light. The German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) is also participating in the campaign “Diabetes: protect our future” of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF). The DZD not only conducts scientific research, it also informs the general public about diabetes. This year, during telephone campaigns and at a central Patients’ Day in Leipzig, DZD experts will provide advice and information.

The blue illuminations of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, the Allianz Arena in Munich, the Kö-Bogen in Düsseldorf and the Holsten Gate in Lübeck shall draw attention to Diabetes Day. The light spectacle was initiated by Diabetes DE – German Diabetes Aid and the partner institutes or associated institutes of the DZD located in these cities: Helmholtz Zentrum München in Munich, the German Diabetes Center (DDZ) in Düsseldorf and the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein in Lübeck. On the afternoon of November 14th, prior to the illumination of the Holsten Gate, an information event for people with and without diabetes will take place in St. Peter’s Church in Lübeck from 3:00pm to 6:00pm.
“We want to raise awareness about diabetes, a widespread disease which affects approximately six million people in Germany alone. Moreover, a high number of not yet diagnosed cases can be assumed. That is why it is important to increase knowledge about the disease and ways to prevent it,” said Professor Martin Hrabě de Angelis, board member in the DZD and director of the Institute of Experimental Genetics at Helmholtz Zentrum München.

Telephone campaigns
On November 11, 2014 the DZD therefore conducted a Germany-wide telephone campaign under the slogan “Expert Q & A for People Affected by Diabetes”, together with the Competence Network Diabetes Mellitus. Professor Michael Roden, member of the board of the DZD and scientific director of the German Diabetes Center in Düsseldorf, will be available for an additional telephone campaign in North Rhine-Westphalia on November 13, 2014. He will answer questions about diabetes from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm under the telephone number 0211 - 1670 838.

Patients’ Day in Leipzig
The central public event on World Diabetes Day “Let’s all tackle diabetes together!” will take place on Sunday, November 23rd, in the Congress Center Leipzig (CCL). From 10:00 am to 4:00 pm the DZD will also be represented with an interactive information booth. DZD diabetes expert Prof. Peter Schwarz, Technische Universität Dresden, Prof. Hans Hauner, Technische Universität München and Prof. Matthias Blüher, University Hospital Leipzig will hold talks for patients at 11:30am and 12:30 pm and will be available at the booth to answer any questions.

Online information
Information about diabetes can be found online on the website of the German Center for Diabetes Research www.dzd-ev.de. For more information, please visit www.diabetesinformationsdienst-muenchen.de or
http://ddz.uni-duesseldorf.de/de/informationsdienste 
Information on the central event in the Congress Center Leipzig (CCL) is available at http://www.diabetesde.org/weltdiabetestag/2014/