Ten diabetes researchers and experts in the UA community contributed heavily to the recently published "Handbook of Diabetes Management."

Of the almost 50 authors who contributed worldwide, seven are affiliated with the UA Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, and three are affiliated with other UA colleges, said handbook co-editor Vicki B. Guabeca.

Guabeca, who is the director of public affairs and marketing at the College of Public Health, said authors who contributed were chosen primarily because they had a large level of expertise or experience in the field of diabetes research.

The handbook addresses "the complexity of the disease, the diversity of the populations it affects, and the continued improvement of care systems," according to a press release.

Guabeca said the handbook is geared primarily toward healthcare professionals, and covers an assortment of topics ranging from nutrition and fad dieting, to opening a community diabetes program.

Co-editor Donna Zazworsky, manager of the Diabetes Care and Community Outreach Centers at Carondelet Health Network hospitals, said she felt the broad range of topics the handbook covered made it useful to the many different members of the health care profession.

"People can pick things up in this book and take them and put them into practice really quickly," Zazworsky said.

Guabeca also said the book is different from many other types of diabetes handbooks because it's so comprehensive.

"I think that it's a good thing that all of this information is in one place," Guabeca said.

However, Zazworsky said making sure the handbook was up-to-date on its broad range of topics was one of the most challenging aspects of writing and publishing it.

Zazworsky said because the book took nearly a year to be written and assembled, and another year to be edited and published, updating the handbook with the newest possible information was always a temptation.

The handbook would help the medical community treat the huge chunk of the American population that suffers from diabetes, Guabeca said.

There are about 18 million Americans who are suffering from diabetes today, and in some American Indian communities, about 50 percent of people over the age of 35 suffer from the disease, Guabeca said.

Although the handbook is geared primarily toward members of the health care profession, Guabeca said anyone who wants to purchase the book can order it at any major bookstore or buy it online.