Why write a blog on diabetes research?

There are two reasons for writing a blog on diabetes research - one is purely practical, the other is, well, purely practical.

Since 2015, I have been writing 'In this Issue' for two of the research journals of the American Diabetes Association. Every month I write four summary articles on prominent research that appears in each issue of Diabetes and Diabetes Care.

That means I've written over 300 of them since I started in 2015, with each summary representing a single research paper. That is a lot of research, but here's the thing, it is a drop in the ocean compared to all the diabetes-related research that is going on. Keeping track of all of this is a pretty daunting task.

I also write a section called 'Diabetes is Primary' for two other research journals of the ADA - Clinical Diabetes and Diabetes Spectrum. These take a broader approach to diabetes research, featuring studies appearing in the ADA journals but also other sources. 

Up until now I have simply tried to cover prominent research that appears at the time I need to write it. However, given these journals are published five times a year, there can be a gap between writing and publication and in that gap there have been publications that should have been covered but I couldn't. 

Basically, timeliness is an issue and that is what this blog is trying to deal with.

So, there we go, two reasons to start this blog. Keeping track of diabetes research and addressing timeliness of coverage. If it's a good read along the way and people find it helpful, then all to the good. And, if this blog manages to generate a readership of its own, we'll call that a bonus!