November is Diabetes Awareness Month

Living through history

Resources:

In 1920, Dr. Frederick Banting was working as a medical practitioner based in London, Ontario, when he first conceived the idea of extracting insulin from a pancreas to treat diabetes. After several months of experimentation, and with the assistance of Charles Best, insulin was eventually purified for human use.

The first successful test on a human patient with diabetes occurred on January 23, 1922. The death sentence for diabetes sufferers around the world had finally been lifted.

With new hope at hand, Dr. Best realized that the growing numbers of Canadians with diabetes were going to require an organization to serve their needs. In the late 1940s, the Diabetic Association of Ontario was formed.

As other provinces and territories started to form their own associations, it became clear that if the provincial branches combined their resources they could more effectively serve their membership. This culminated in the formation of the Canadian Diabetes Association in 1953.

Today, the Association is active in more than 150 Canadian communities and supports people living with diabetes through research, advocacy, education and services. We are supported in our efforts by a community-based network of volunteers, employees, healthcare professionals, researchers and partners.