Joined the programme in 2021
Asahi City, Chiba Prefecture, joined as the second CCD city in Japan. With the programme, the partners aim to identify issues related to type 2 diabetes and to provide appropriate health guidance and educational activities, thereby contributing to reducing the increase of diabetes and prevent its complications in Asahi City.
With an ageing population comes an increase in diabetes and other non-communicable diseases. In Asahi, average life expectancy and healthy life expectancy are lower compared to other regions, especially for males, and hospitalisations costs for lifestyle-related diseases are on the rise.
Asahi City, under the leadership of its mayor, has developed a vision and strategy called the "Lifelong Active City Concept” with health as a central theme. Hence, the aging of the population and the promotion of health and disease control, including prevention of diabetes and its complications, are major issues in Asahi City.
Key facts and figures
9.1%
of adults in Asahi are living with diabetes1
In 2021, Asahi City, Chiba University, and Novo Nordisk Japan signed a comprehensive collaboration agreement focusing on 1) prevention of diabetes onset and 2) prevention of severe diabetes complications.
For the prevention of diabetes onset, the work is rooted in the concepts of "Social Determinants of Health" and "Health in All Policies”. Research has looked into the city's culture and the current state of food and exercise, and issues identified in terms of infrastructure, such as the difficulty of walking on streets; culture, such as citizens' resistance to exercise; and the food access environment, such as the large number of food and alcohol units sold in supermarkets.
For the prevention of severe diabetes complications, the focus is on the prevention of nephropathy severity in particular. A review of the measures Asahi City has taken so far and interviews with local stakeholders are underway providing an overview of strengths and challenges of the current situation.
“This project is linked to the SDGs, and working together with Chiba University and Novo Nordisk toward the same goal is a good experience for our staff. Through this project, we would like to contribute to the health of citizens and help our staff members grow.”
— Yaichiro Yonemoto, Mayor, Asahi city, Chiba Prefecture
Asahi City. We conducted an interim assessment of the data health plan. Updated 27 December 2021: https://www.city.asahi.lg.jp/soshiki/9/16126.html.
