The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation has announced a $5 million grant over three years from pharmaceutical manufacturer Novo Nordisk to address the need for education on how people with Type 1 diabetes can pursue physical activity safely.

In June 2013, JDRF conducted a survey of T1D patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals and found that exercise and food are among the five top challenges for patients with T1D. To help address that challenge, a panel of T1D experts will spend the first two years of the T1D Performance in Exercise and Knowledge (PEAK) initiative working to develop a curriculum designed to educate healthcare providers at events in the U.S. and UK about the environmental, dietary, and physiological elements of physical activity for people with T1D. The third year of the initiative will focus on patient education at events hosted by JDRF chapters domestically and internationally.

"A large portion of the T1D patient community turns to JDRF for education and support with their condition," said JDRF president and CEO Jeffrey Brewer. "Programs like PEAK will continue to build on the resources available to this community and improve the overall quality of life that can be achieved with the disease, a major goal of our organization."