‘Diabetes patients in Pakistan number 33m’

Govt establishes clinic where citizens can avail timely treatment free of cost

MULTAN:

Additional Secretary Primary and Secretary Healthcare Asim Raza said that Pakistan ranked third in the world for diabetes patients, with 33 million diabetic people and continuously increasing health complications.

Raza was addressing a ceremony at Bahauddin Zakariya University on Saturday while visiting a screening camp for diabetes and blood pressure. Both diabetes and blood pressure are growing increasingly frequent among young people and there is a dire need to create awareness among them, he stated.

He added that around 27 percent of people ranging from 20 to 79 years-old are suffering from diabetes. According to the National Survey of Pakistan, 18.9 percent of people above 15-years-old also suffer from issues blood pressure.

Raza stated that the only way to avoid the aforementioned health complications was a change in lifestyle. The government established clinics at the tehsil and district level, where citizens could avail timely treatment free of cost.

Vice Chancellor Bahauddin Zakariya University Dr Mansoor Akbar Kundi expressed his concerns about the rising ratio of diabetes and blood pressure. He echoed the importance of changes in lifestyle and the consumption of healthy foods.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 13^th, 2022.