what they said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)

A once-a-week injectable diabetes drug appears to lower blood sugar somewhat better than the same drug injected twice daily, creating promise that the new formulation may be a more useful part of a Type 2 diabetes control regime, a new study suggests.

The drug, exenatide, also has the advantage of triggering modest weight loss - an average of just over 3.5 kilograms - in people taking it, making it the only available diabetes drug to do so. While some diabetes drugs are "weight neutral," most cause weight gain, which can complicate diabetes control and undermine a person's willingness to take the medication...

The original article can be found at: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080909.LDIABETES09/TPStory?cid=al_gam_globeedge

how did it rate? (more information)

what we said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)

This story included some really good elements and serves as a good example for health-related journalism. Not only did it include a good description of the evidence, but it also appropriately described both the benefits (in absolute and relative terms) and the risks associated with the new drug exenatide. The article successfully outlined the sources of information and was clear in stating that this new product was not yet on the Canadian market. While some might argue that the overall treatment of diabetes in mass media does border on disease mongering, the article did not show any obvious elements of this criterion.

Although exenatide is not yet available in Canada, the comprehensiveness nature of this report provides readers with information necessary to making an informed decision about this treatment option.

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