A new “Language Matters” guide aiming to raise awareness of how we can improve communication with and about people with diabetes was launched today.

The short “guide was developed to support people working in the media as well as the general public in Ireland. There is plenty of evidence to suggest we can improve our messaging, body language, and spoken word to be more supportive of the person living with diabetes.

The Language Matters movement is not a new concept; it started in Australia in 2011, and since then, many countries have followed suit with their versions of guides and position statements. In early 2023, the Diabetes Language Matters Ireland Working Group came together to develop an Irish version of a Diabetes Language Matters guide. This group consists of people with lived experience of diabetes, academics, and healthcare professionals.

So, how we speak and write about diabetes matters! There are different types of diabetes – to read more about them, click here.