Bitter reality: Surge in diabetes sets alarm bells ringing

Experts say little work has been done to prevent and cure disease at govt or private level.

LAHORE/ KARACHI: Recently, a sharp increase in diabetes has been witnessed in urban as well as rural areas of Punjab. Majority of the cases were reported in health facilities in Lahore, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Sheikhupura, Multan and other districts and tehsils. The surge in such cases was mainly due to unhealthy eating habits, lack of exercise and high strain and stress levels.

While expressing views, Lahore Services Hospital Diabetes Management Centre Head Professor Khadija Irfan Khawaja said, “In 2000, Pakistan was ranked sixth in the world with 5.2 million diabetic patients. However, it would become fifth in 2030 with 13.9 million diabetics.” She added, “This sharp spread of disease in the country needed some immediate measures and awareness among the public about the reasons for spread of the disease.”

She maintained there were two types of diabetes: one is called type I, in which children and young people often become victim, while the other is type II, which is caused by obesity in aged people.

Regarding the reasons for spread of diabetes among women, Prof Khadija said women lack opportunity to walk and exercise. They often stay indoors which causes the disease among them.”

She said, “Diabetes is increasing in urban population with the ratio of 10%, while the ratio of spread in rural people is comparatively less.” She said at least 30 minutes exercise daily was a must to keep diabetes in control.



Health experts say that high stress levels and unhealthy eating and lifestyle habits are also contributing to an alarming rise in diabetes in Pakistan, contrary to global trends.

While there are no fresh surveys or official figures available about the current situation, rough estimates by experts suggest that this figure has since jumped to 30 to 40 million Pakistanis, or around 20 per cent of the country’s population.

Pakistan is in the throes of a diabetes epidemic like other developing nations in Asia. The disease is also known as a ‘silent killer’ as it is a metabolic disorder that results in the inability of your body to either produce or use insulin properly.

Almost seven million diabetic patients are currently housed in the country. According to an estimate, Pakistan may soon become overstrained with around 15 million more in the coming decades. There is a need to change the lifestyle of the people to counter the edidemic.

Medical experts say that on an average 10 people die of diabetes every hour in Pakistan, while some seven million are diagnosed with the disease that claimed 86,000 lives in 2015 alone.

However, the bitter truth is the ratio of diabetes among urban population is much higher than those living in rural areas.

Earlier, while speaking to The Express Tribune, Prof Dr Jamal Zafar, a diabetes specialist at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences said, “Every third patient who visits the outpatient departments at public hospitals suffers from diabetes.”  The medical practitioner was of the view that the number of people dying from various complications arising out of diabetes was also quite high and increasing. “By contrast, this figure is steadily falling in Europe and other developed countries owing to advances in treatment, awareness and preventative measures.”

He added diabetes can be managed and its consequences avoided or delayed with due care in diet, physical activity, medication and regular screenings.

He lamented, “Unfortunately, little to no work has been done to prevent and cure the disease at the government or the private level- including non-governmental organisations, educational institutions and media.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 25^th, 2017.