Diabetes, a global health issue
People with diabetes are more likely to have poor outcomes for several infectious diseases, including Covid-19.
Earlier this week, World Diabetes Day was commemorated with the intention of raising awareness on the disease as a global public health issue.
The 2022 theme for World Diabetes Day was: “Access to diabetes education, underpins the larger multi-year theme of ‘access to care.”
The Gamalakhe Community Health Centre (CHC) also observed World Diabetes Day on Monday, November 14.
Gamalakhe CHC public relations officer, Lifa Radebe, said the purpose of the commemoration was to raise awareness on the condition that millions of people all around the world live with every day.
Radebe said diabetes is about the body’s ability and inability to produce the required amount of a hormone called insulin to control glucose levels in the blood.
He said there are broadly two types of diabetes, saying that Type 1 requires daily administration of artificial insulin by means of injection or insulin pump.
Radebe said Type 2 is more generally managed by a combination of dietary control and medication in the form of tablets.
“It’s very important that people with diabetes maintain good control of their condition to help reduce and avoid long term complications, and there have been huge advances in this area over recent years. However, it is vitally important that development work continues, to ensure people with the condition can live as normal a life as possible. World Diabetes Day provides an opportunity to raise awareness of diabetes as a global public health issue and what needs to be done, collectively and individually, for better prevention, diagnosis and management of the condition,” said Radebe.
He added that diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces.
He said insulin is a hormone that regulates blood glucose.
“Over time, diabetes can damage the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys, and nerves. Adults with diabetes have a two-to three-fold increased risk of heart attacks and strokes. Combined with reduced blood flow, neuropathy (nerve damage) in the feet increases the chance of foot ulcers, infection and eventual need for limb amputation. Diabetic retinopathy is an important cause of blindness and occurs as a result of long-term accumulated damage to the small blood vessels in the retina. Close to one million people are blind due to diabetes,” he said, adding that people with diabetes are more likely to have poor outcomes for several infectious diseases, including Covid-19.
Radebe said to help prevent Type 2 diabetes and its complications, people should achieve and maintain a healthy body weight, be physically active by doing at least 30 minutes of regular, moderate-intensity activity on most days, more activity is required for weight control, and eating a healthy diet, avoiding sugar and saturated fats, and avoid tobacco use.
He added that early diagnosis can be accomplished through relatively inexpensive testing of blood glucose.
He said treatment of diabetes involves diet and physical activity along with lowering of blood glucose and the levels of other known risk factors that damage blood vessels.
“Tobacco use cessation is also important to avoid complications. It’s very important that people with diabetes maintain good control of their condition to help reduce and avoid long term complications, and there have been huge advances in this area over recent years. However, it is vitally important that development work continues, to ensure people with the condition can live as normal a life as possible,” he said.
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