(Photo courtesy Regan Communications Group)
Back Bay resident Bettina Chiu works to raise money and awareness for the Joslin Diabetes Center’s Asian-American Diabetes Initiative through its “Spoonful of Ginger” event Monday.
One Back Bay resident is working to help find a cure for diabetes with a ginger-inspired food tasting that supports the Joslin Diabetes Center’s Asian-American Diabetes Initiative.
Bettina Chiu, a co-chairwoman of this year’s “A Spoonful of Ginger” food tasting set for Monday, is working to raise awareness of the rising number of Asians and Asian-Americans living with diabetes and raise money for the center, an organization close to her heart.
Chiu, 27, first began supporting the center’s initiative after her father, Bernard, was diagnosed with high blood pressure — a condition that could lead to Type 2 diabetes
“It was a wake up call, to say the least,” Chiu said in a statement about the diagnosis of her energetic and fit father. “Thanks to the AADI, I started to learn about the alarming prevalence of diabetes among the Asian-American population.”
With the help of the center’s lead doctor William Hsu, Chiu and her family all started eating less carbohydrates and exercising more to help Bernard keep his high blood pressure from escalating into diabetes.
“Our dinners were no different than any other Chinese household; rice was the biggest portion of food on the plate,” said Chiu. “We had to change the way we prepared our meals and what we ate.”
Chiu’s father has not been diagnosed with diabetes, and she keeps working to support the center’s research and care through the food tasting by attending in past years and now helping to organize the growing event.
“After a couple of years of attending it really motivated me,” said Chiu. “A Spoonful of Ginger supports this great cause, and it is so much fun, you can’t help but get excited about it.”
The food tasting event is from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Art of the Americas wing of the Museum of Fine Arts. It features dishes from a number of Boston chefs, including Jasper White, Andy Husbands, Gordon Hamersley, Ting San, Evan Deluty, Joanne Chang, Brian Reyelt, Jacky Robert and Jose Duarte.
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Twitter: @YourBackBay, @JohannaKaiser
E-mail: johanna.yourtown@gmail.com
