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Canadian Olympian Hayley Wickenheiser with Sun Life Financial’s Paul Joliat and the CEOs of Canada’s children’s hospitals at the launch of the Sun Life Financial Child and Youth Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Initiative.

To support efforts to reduce rates of type 2 diabetes among Canadians, Sun Life Financial is teaming up with sports icons for this year's Diabetes Awareness Month, including Canadian Olympian Hayley Wickenheiser.

Ms. Wickenheiser is passionate about active living and good nutrition for her family. She was motivated to get involved in diabetes awareness because of her personal connection to the disease.

"My father was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes years ago," she says. "Since then, he's made some incredible life changes – limiting sugars in his diet, walking, golfing, and going to the gym five days a week for cross training – which have diminished his need for medications and interventions."

Seeing the impact of her father's lifestyle changes further inspired Ms. Wickenheiser to spread the word that Canadians can take steps to protect themselves from type 2 diabetes and its potentially serious complications. And as a mother, she understands the importance of encouraging healthy behaviours for her child.

"I am increasingly concerned with how sedentary our children have become and our overall lifestyles, which limit activity and movement," she says. "Sun Life wants to help prevent and educate people on the diabetes epidemic. This is easy to get behind."

The World Health Organization calls diabetes the epidemic of the 21st century and according to Diabetes Canada, one in three Canadians has diabetes or prediabetes, which is defined as higher-than-normal blood glucose levels not yet high enough to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes.

Sun Life announced its commitment to diabetes in 2012 after seeing the increasing impact the disease was having on their clients, the health-care system and Canadians at large. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes had been increasing at alarming rates, and Sun Life understood the need to step up and do something to help slow the projected growth rate. With helping Canadians achieve lifetime financial security and live healthier lives as their purpose statement, it was a natural step to team up with Diabetes Canada in 2014 on an ongoing awareness and prevention campaign to make a larger impact to Canadians.

A key focus of the Diabetes Canada campaign is to urge Canadians to take the CANRISK test (www.SunLifeAgainst
Diabetes.ca) to identify their risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

"Assessing risk factors is critical, given that 1.5 million Canadians have diabetes and don't know it," says Lisa Ritchie, Senior Vice-President and Chief Marketing Officer, Sun Life Financial. "If we can help some of these people self-identify, we know that it can lead to potential intervention and lifestyle changes, which in turn will reduce the number of people developing type 2 diabetes or developing complications from the disease."

"We are extremely proud of our ongoing work in the field of diabetes prevention and continue to team up with like-minded organizations globally to help fight this disease," adds Ms. Ritchie.

Sun Life also recently announced the launch of Sun Life Dunk for Diabetes, in conjunction with the Toronto Raptors. This national program, in support of diabetes awareness and prevention, aims to teach Canadian youth the importance of a healthy and active lifestyle to prevent type 2 diabetes.

"Whether it's with Diabetes Canada, JDRF, Canada's Children's Hospital Foundations, or the Toronto Raptors and our new Dunk for Diabetes program, we are proud to have committed more than $22 million to diabetes awareness, prevention, care and research initiatives across the globe since 2012."


This content was produced by Randall Anthony Communications, in partnership with The Globe and Mail's advertising department. The Globe's editorial department was not involved in its creation.

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