January 9, 2009 (Durham, North Carolina) — A Duke researcher says that despite the lack of a "gold-standard" clinical trial proving the benefits of a low-carb approach, he has seen enough in his own patients to know that, at least for some, a very low-carb approach can essentially reverse diabetes, without adversely affecting lipid profiles [1]. In his latest published research, Dr Eric C Westman (Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC) and colleagues report that obese patients with type 2 diabetes randomized to a low-carbohydrate diet rather than a low-glycemic, reduced-calorie diet were more likely to experience improvements in glycemic control and, in some cases, patients were actually able to eliminate their diabetes medications and "reverse" their diabetes, at least as it is defined by hemoglobin A_1c (HbA_1c) level.

According to Westman, one of the novel aspects of this study was that patients in the low-carb group were maintained on what is typically considered the "induction phase" or "intensive" carbohydrate restriction of common low-carb diets. In the Atkins diet--and the Atkins Foundation funded this study--that induction phase means reducing carbs to <20 g per day for the first two weeks; in Westman et al's study, carbohydrate content was kept at <20 g for the entire six months of the study...

This paper, published in the Public Library of  Science Medicine, recommends that preventing obesity should be a priority from early stages of economic development, accompanied by population-level and personal interventions for blood pressure and cholesterol. (May, 2005)
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Preventing Chronic Disease - A Vital Investment
Global report published by WHO.

The Observatory on Health Care for Chronic Conditions - WHO 
It is a dynamic, web-based resource centre that offers information on innovative approaches to organizing care for chronic conditions. 

The Lancet Chronic Diseases Series

Preventing chronic diseases - How many lives can we save?
Preventing chronic diseases - taking stepwise action
Responding to the threat of chronic diseases in India
Preventing chronic diseases in China
There are 4 articles in this series on global chronic diseases. Please note that to read these articles, online registration with the Lancet is required. This process and access to the articles is free.

Chronic Disease: An economic perspective
A report by the Oxford Health Alliance
Excerpt from the weblink:
"This major report, 'Chronic disease: an economic perspective', written by Marc Suhrcke, Rachel A. Nugent, David Stuckler and Lorenzo Rocco for OxHA, demonstrates that chronic diseases – heart and lung disease, cancer and diabetes – are having a negative economic impact on both the developed and developing world and should thus be adequately addressed by domestic and international policy makers."

Diet and Physical Activity: A Public Health Priority - WHO
Download information sheets on chronic diseases and further documents and publications of  WHO strategies on diet and chronic disease prevention.