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2017: another record year for
the Dietary Science Foundation
24/01/2018
Can we call it a hat trick? The Dietary Science Foundation set a new fundraising record for the third consecutive year. In 2017 we collected a total of 151,000 euros, an increase of almost 75 percent compared to 2016. Here is a summary of the past year.
But first and foremost: Thank you very much to everyone who believes in us and has donated money during 2017! Without you there would be no Dietary Science Foundation. Now to the year’s most important ventures and events.
Our international site took shape
During the first half of the year we worked on developing an international site in English: dietaryscience.org. The studies we support are important for people all over the world, so the Dietary Science Foundation needs to be an international organization. Michèle Wilcox translated all the Swedish texts on a volunteer basis and will continue to do so. We are very grateful for her help.
Through fire and ice for the Dietary Science Foundation
We have heartwarming thoughts for blind athlete Patrik Olsson and his sighted guide, Fredrik Söderlund. On May 17, they completed the punishing obstacle race Tough Viking wearing the Dietary Science Foundation’s logo on their shirts. In Patrik’s own words: “No more diabetics should go blind due to the wrong diet.” Together he and Fredrik literally ran through fire and ice to draw attention to our investment in a study of diet in type 1 diabetes, and it made a splash in the media. Thanks to them, information about the Dietary Science Foundation’s investment spread to a much wider circle.
Romme Alpin donates a sugar crown
In May we got the good news that Romme Alpin, a ski resort outside Borlänge, had decided to donate a total of 240,000 Swedish crowns to the Dietary Science Foundation. This is the biggest gift we have been given so far. During the winter ski season, Romme levied a kind of local sugar tax. They raised the price of soda by one crown to be able to donate money to research on obesity and type 2 diabetes. Romme then matched the sum they collected, and this generous donation enabled us to announce a funding opportunity for research into diet and childhood obesity. However, all of the proposals that came in were for projects that were either already well financed, were closely linked to the food industry or were set up in a way that the scientific advisory board found to be incompatible with the project reaching its goals. So in November the board decided to renew the call after expanding the criteria to include projects where the goal is to evaluate the role of diet in obesity, type 2 diabetes or other obesity-related problems/diseases.
The study of diet in type 1 diabetes received full funding
Now to a bit of news that caused us to cheer out loud: in September the insurance company Skandia decided to award the study of diet in type 1 diabetes a total of 283,000 euros. Later in the fall Stockholm County Council also donated 60,000 euros to the project, and in December the Swedish Diabetes Foundation decided to give 31,500 euros. The study has thus received full funding. It will be the biggest study ever done on how diet can be used to stabilize blood sugar in type 1 diabetes. Today, only a quarter of all type 1 diabetes patients manage to keep their blood sugar within the target range, and many lives are shortened by the disease. Better dietary advice, which lowers blood sugar, can therefore save lives. The researchers who will run the study at Karolinska Hospital are about to submit an application for ethical approval. Once it is approved they can start preparing for the study itself.
The IBS project started at Sahlgrenska hospital
The study of the role of carbohydrates in IBS started at Sahlgrenska University Hospital during the spring of 2017. It will include a total of 300 patients; 23 patients have completed the treatment so far. The project was put on a back burner because the doctoral students in charge have had to take several courses that are mandatory for their program. To raise the number of study participants, the researchers will advertise for patients in January of 2018.
2018 – we’re looking forward to an exciting year
The Dietary Science Foundation looks forward to 2018 with butterflies in our stomachs. We will continue to focus on projects that fill important knowledge gaps in health care and can establish new dietary treatments that help people feel better. The food we eat should heal our bodies, not destroy them. That’s our philosophy, and we will continue to push for it in 2018.
Once again: Thank you to everyone who supports us! If you want to become one of our supporters, have a look at this page: Donate. We wish you all a Happy New Year and hope it’s a tasty one full of spicy flavors and delicious dinners that fortify body and soul.
