HEALTH

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — If there are 366 million diabetics worldwide, that means that the U.S. piece of that sugar-free pie is 7.1%. And if the U.S. diabetes population grows by more than 50.8% over the next two decades, as the International Diabetes Foundation attests, that'll mean there will be 38.6 million diabetics in this country by 2030. That's a lot of diabetes education that needs to happen between now and then, and what better place to have that happen than at the neighborhood drug store?

NEW YORK — Citi Investment Research & Analysis is projecting that the peak of flu season may occur beyond last season's peak of January/February, a factor that may place a negative drag on retail same-store sales results over first quarter 2012.

MADISON, N.J. — Pfizer Consumer Healthcare on Tuesday unveiled a new library at P.S. 130 in the Bronx as part of its Advil Congestion Relief Project. New York Yankee fan favorite Brett Gardner helped unveil a newly decongested library with improved access to computers and books.

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Consumers are gravitating toward "natural" over-the-counter remedies, according to a new Kline report, "Natural OTCs 2011: Impact of Non-Drug Products on the U.S. OTC Market," released Wednesday.

While the U.S. traditional nonprescription drugs industry registered an average compound annual growth rate of 2.5% between 2005 and 2010, the market for natural OTC remedies has grown at a CAGR of 5.9% per year from 2009 to 2011, according to the research study.

PRINCETON, N.J. — Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca presented an analysis Wednesday of 14 clinical trials at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions in Orlando, Fla., the companies said.

The phase-2b and phase-3 trials all involved the investigational Type 2 diabetes drug dapagliflozin and, the companies said, showed that use of the drug did not lead to an unacceptable risk to adult patients' cardiovascular health compared with other treatments.

LONDON — GlaxoSmithKline announced the results from the first of eight phase-3 clinical trials that examined the efficacy of albiglutide in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.

The Harmony 7 trial was a 32-week, head-to-head, open-label, noninferiority study that compared albiglutide, an investigational once weekly glucagon-like peptide-1 agonist, with once-daily liraglutide. According to the results, patients administered GSK's drug saw a 0.78% reduction in HbA1C, while patients administered liraglutide saw a 0.99% reduction in HbA1C.

WASHINGTON — Rite Aid, UnitedHealth Group and the YMCA are partnering to offer community-based programs to combat Type 2 diabetes in the Washington, D.C., area through the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance, the three companies said.

ATLANTA — SoloHealth, a consumer-driven healthcare technology company, on Wednesday said Stanley Blaylock, former Walgreens SVP and former president of Walgreens Health Services, will join SoloHealth’s board of directors. The announcement comes as SoloHealth prepares for a nationwide rollout in 2012 of its next-generation, consumer health screening kiosk, the SoloHealth Station.