LAHORE:
Diabetes is expected to become the seventh leading cause of death by the year 2030, the Pakistan Medical Society (PMS) President Dr Masood Shaikh said on Wednesday.
Addressing a seminar titled Diabetes Education and Prevention organised by PMS and Mother and Child Rehabilitation Society in connection with World Diabetes Day, Shaikh said that the number of diabetes deaths was projected to increase by over 50 per cent in the next decade, with over 80 per cent of diabetes deaths occurring in low and middle-income countries. He said around 347 million people worldwide have diabetes.
Shaikh said a large proportion of diabetes cases and subsequent complications can be prevented by a healthy diet, regular physical activity, maintaining a normal body weight and avoiding tobacco consumption.
He said diabetes is an emerging global epidemic that can be traced to a rapid increase in obesity and lack of physical activity.
He said lack of access to health services and essential medicines can lead to complications, including blindness, amputation and kidney failure.
World Diabetes Day is observed on November 14 to mark the birthday of Frederick Banting. He and Charles Best were instrumental in the discovery of insulin in 1922, a life-saving treatment for diabetes patients.
Shaikh said the incidence of diabetes amongst children is increasing. “A number of Type-1 diabetes cases have been reported in children. There is no way to prevent Type-1 diabetes.”
“The incidence of Type-2 diabetes has also increased amongst children and adolescents…this is traced to the rise in childhood obesity,” he said.
He said simple lifestyles can control the onset of Type-2 diabetes. “One should maintain healthy body weight; be physically active – at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise on a regular basis,” he said.
He said diabetic retinopathy causes blindness from accumulated damage to the small blood vessels in the retina. He said around two per cent of people become blind after 15 years of diabetes while around 10 per cent develop severe visual impairment. He also said diabetes was amongst the leading causes of kidney failure. “Between 10 and 20 per cent of diabetes-related deaths are due to kidney failure,” he said.
He said other complications include diabetic neuropathy, tingling, pain, numbness, and weakness in the feet and hands.
Diabetes Awareness Walk:
Advisor to Chief Minister for Health Khawaja Salman Rafique said people need to be told about how to prevent the onset of disease.
He was speaking at an awareness walk and symposium held in connection with World Diabetes Day at Lahore General Hospital.
LGH Board of Management Chairman Lt General (retd) Khwaja Ziauddin Butt, PGMI Principal Anjum Habib Vohra, former- King Edward Medical College principal Dr Mehmood Ali Malik, LGH MS Dr Muhammad Hassan, Prof Ghayasun Nabi Tayyab, Prof Dr Agha Shabbir Ali, Prof Dr Ali Haider, Prof Dr Muhammad Aslam, Dr Israrul Haq Toor and Diabetes Specialist Dr Imran Hassan Khan were present.
A free diabetes camp was also organised at the hospital where hundreds of patients were given free of charge test for blood sugar.
Vohra said diabetes is a silent killer which affects the heart and kidneys. He said more than ten million people in Pakistan are suffering from the disease.
He said diabetes was the mother of all diseases and should be eliminated through a vigorous campaign like the campaign against the dengue virus.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 15th, 2012.
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