The country currently ranks at 8th for its most number of diabetic cases, which might move up to the 4th by the year 2025.
BIDE Director Prof. Abdul Basit, while addressing the programme, said that diabetes was a source of huge economic burden for the country, as each of its chronic complication requires enormous amounts of money. He lamented that there was severe mismatch between health resources and the diabetes related economic burden in the country.
Prof. Abdul Basit referred to cases of diabetic foot and mentioned that people developing foot ulcer because of diabetes constitute about 0.22 per cent of the population of Pakistan. To double the total health budget of the country, he said, they needed to treat the 0.22 per cent of the population.
“The scenario demands collaborative efforts between diabetes patients, health care professionals and health care policy makers,” he said.
Prof. Abdul Basit discussed the statistics with respect to the prevalence of diabetes in the country. He said that the newly diagnosed diabetes in Pakistan is five per cent in men and 4.8 per cent in women in rural areas, while in urban areas it was 5.1 per cent for men and 6.8 per cent for women.
He urged the attendees to ensure that education programmes focused on health issues that promote healthy lifestyle, dietary habits and regular exercising are carried out.
He said that the country currently ranks at 8th for its most number of diabetic cases, which might move up to the 4th by the year 2025.
According to Prof. Abdul Basit, 7.1 million people in the country were in a pre-diabetic state and would develop diabetes in the coming years if they failed to incorporate major transformation in their lifestyle and adopt preventive measures.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 22nd, 2013.
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Readers, modern rates of sugar consumption - especially via sugary drinks - are a key driver of global obesity and diabetes, together the greatest public-health challenge of our times: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20693348
In an effort to counter these disturbing trends across the globe - especially amongst young people - I am calling for a ban on all sugary drinks in all schools in all nations: http://www.australianparadox.com/pdf/Sugary-Drinks-Ban.pdf
This is a global problem and it will require a global solution. If after assessing the facts you think this proposal has merit, please forward my piece in the link above to parents, students, teachers, principals and heads of schools, nurses, doctors, dentists and others involved in public health and education.