Emirates Foundation Awards a grant for Diabetes Epidemic Research at ADU
The Emirates Foundation awarded a grant of 200,000 dirhams to two ADU professors who will be conducting research on the current diabetes epidemic in the United Arab Emirates. The two professors are Dr. Ashraf Khalil from the College of Engineering and Computer Sciences, and Dr. Salam Abdallah from the College of Business Administration. The grant is a part of the Emirates Foundation’s commitment to supporting scientific research as part of its effort to promote technological and scientific advancement in the UAE.
Dr. Nabil Ibrahim, the ADU Chancellor, commented on the significance of the Emirates Foundation’s grant which represents the first step of cooperation between the university and the foundation, adding that scientific research is at the top of the university’s list of strategies and the interests of the university’s Board of Trustees. The chancellor mentioned that the university has attracted highly experienced and qualified faculty members who served in prestigious universities around the world and made several contributions to society by conducting scientific researche in different fields.
The Chancellor also mentioned that the university launched its scientific research strategy at the point where others have ended theirs, and it’s keen on the quality of the research content rather than the quantity. The Chancellor pointed out that other faculty members will be directing their research to social issues related to the national development of the UAE such as protecting the environment, energy, telecommunications, economy, technology, management and other fields.
Dr. Yosser Gadoum, the Dean of the College of Scientific Research and Higher Studies at ADU, noted that the university strives to become a comprehensive university that not only focuses on teaching, but also puts particular interest in applied strategic research in service of the community as well as the UAE’s and the Arab world’s development. Dr. Yosser added that the university aims at building a strong and reliable network of scholars in their various fields throughout the world, and to enlarge the university’s network of scholars. The grant will allow ADU’s faculty members to be up to date in their areas of research.
Dr. Ashraf Khalil, an assistant a professor at the College of Computer Sciences and the principle investigator in this project, was responsible for initiating the idea and the proposal in seeking funding. He expressed his gratitude to the Emirates Foundation for supporting his research on this very important topic in this region since the UAE has the highest rates of diabetes in the world. Dr. Ashraf mentioned that the research does not only aim to make scientific advancement in this field, but also to achieve a positive change in the daily lives of people. Dr. Ashraf also expressed his pride in being the fist ADU faculty member to have the opportunity of investigating key challenges facing the UAE and receiving the grant which will help him achieve the targeted objectives from the research.
Dr. Ashraf noted that the diabetes epidemic in the UAE and in the Gulf region in general, currently has the highest rates of diabetes in the world. The recent jump in the direct and indirect costs of diabetes in UAE already represents a significant burden on the economy that is expected to worsen over the coming decades in light of the projected rise in the number of UAE residents suffering from this disease. It is also known that nutrition and physical activity are the main causes of this disease. The researchers have discovered that walking for half an hour daily reduces the risks of diabetes, and that obesity can be transferred from one person to another in the sense of individuals gaining more weight due to the nature of their families and friends as a form of peer pressure.
Dr. Ashraf mentioned that the goal is to mobilize technology to help heighten awareness about the health-related consequences of daily lifestyle-related choices. Specifically, the aim is to help individuals lower their risk of diabetes, obesity and other diseases that result from overweight and lack of physical activities
Dr. Ashraf said that there will be two phases in the research; the first will focus on designing a mobile phone program which will track the movement of a group of members and post the results on the internet in order to motivate the rest of the group members and encourage competition. The second phase will be testing this program on a random sample of people whilst taking into consideration the following variables during the research implementation: age groups, social ties, and gender.
Dr. Salam said that the approach applies technology in harnessing the power of peer pressure within social groups to create a supportive social atmosphere for changing habits that negatively affect health and lead to obesity and diabetes. The prediction is that combining exercise and social groups will create positive, healthy competition between the group members to achieve the highest daily scores for the amount of exercise done. A positive impact is expected on the Emirati heath care system as decreased rates of disease will reduce the amount of resources needed for treatment.
Dr. Salam noted that the research could be the first of its kind worldwide and the outcomes are expected to be promising on individuals, noting the importance of spreading awareness about the disease and prevention is better than cure.
