Image credit: SFU Public Affairs and Media Relations
In 2014, The Honourable Kelvin Kennith Ogilvie presented staggering statistics to the Senate showing that nearly 2 million Canadians had diabetes, a number that was quickly on the rise. He further noted that approximately 90% of diabetes in Canada was type 2. Type 2 diabetes is often linked to obesity, which may be due to high fat and sugar diets. To bring awareness to this issue, Ogilvie hosted an informational kiosk event with prominent Canadian healthcare researchers. The purpose of the event was to advocate for disease prevention by showcasing research innovations in the field and promoting healthy lifestyles. During this event, Ogilvie emphasized Canada’s contribution to diabetes care starting with Frederick Banting in 1922 and continuing research developments from clinical hubs in London, Toronto and Ottawa.
Ogilvie is a Canadian academic and politician. He is an expert in biotechnology, bioorganic chemistry and genetic engineering. He was the president of Acadia University for ten years before he was appointed to the Senate of Canada from 2009 until his retirement in 2017. As a politician, Ogilvie was recognized for his advocacy on obesity and diabetes care.
Following the kiosk event, Ogilvie chaired a study on the increasing incidence of obesity in Canada. The report, titled “Obesity in Canada”, was published by the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology in March 2016. This report outlined the obesity epidemic and the rise in diabetes rates in the country. This was particularly evident in children, of whom 20% were considered overweight and nearly 13% considered obese. This number was alarmingly high, having doubled since the 1990s. Ogilvie made several recommendations to address these staggering figures. He urged the federal government to reconsider the Canada Food Guide and to recommend healthier food choices. He highlighted the difficulty for consumers to make healthy food choices when fruit juice is labelled as a healthy product despite its high sugar content. He recommended making healthy foods more affordable to Canadians. He also asked the Senate to consider taxing sugar-sweetened beverages and banning food advertisements directed at children. Until his retirement, Ogilvie played a major role in the multi-year healthy eating strategy, which included changes to the Canada Food Guide and regulations on trans-fat and salt in processed food.
In addition to his advocacy work, Ogilvie also contributed to major scientific advancements. He developed a “Gene Machine” to manufacture DNA. The gene machine was used to produce insulin by using the human insulin gene sequence. This was a major advancement for diabetes. Rather than extracting insulin from human cadavers, this technology allowed for mass production of human insulin using synthetic genes. He also developed a drug called Ganciclovir, which is used worldwide to treat cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Throughout his academic career, Ogilvie won numerous prestigious awards and can be found in the Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame for his accomplishments.
— Written by Stephanie Tran