In this presentation, I’d like to use obesity, type 2 diabetes, and kidney disease, to illustrate how the NIDDK works with the research community to investigate diseases, how they are connected, and approaches that we can take to address each one.

Obesity is present at epidemic levels in the U.S. and many other nations. Being overweight or obese puts individuals at increased risk of developing a number of diseases. One of the more common diseases seen in obese people is type 2 diabetes, the incidence of which is also rising rapidly in the U.S. Type 2 diabetes is, in turn, the leading cause of kidney failure in the U.S. The NIDDK has vigorous research programs targeting each of these three conditions; let’s start by looking at obesity.