Diabetes Health Talk

MOST developing nations are finding it difficult to fight diabetes in view of the mounting expenses involved in its treatment, said International Diabetes Federation (IDF) president-elect Prof Jean Claude Mbanya yesterday at the inaugural lecture on ‘Global prevalence of diabetes and role of IDF’ at the Childhood Diabetes and Obesity Conference.
The three-day conference is being organised by the Qatar Diabetes Association.

Courtesy of Ramesh Mathew.

Several international experts and consultants and members of non-government organisations are taking part in the conference.
Speaking on the increased spending on diabetes treatment by governments, Mbanya referred the Middle East region as the ‘world capital of diabetes’, in view of the massive increase in the number of diabetics in the region.
“Every government in the region needs to spend a considerable amount to control the disease,” he said.
Mbanya said of a total of 246mn diabetic patients in the world, more than 10% (25.4mn) are living in the region’s countries.
The world figure is expected to cross 380mn in 2025.
The speaker informed that among the 10 most diabetics-afflicted countries worldwide, on the basis of percentage of population, six are in the region. The five GCC States - the UAE (20%), Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Sultanate of Oman (all between 15 and 20%) are ranked between second and sixth in that order. Egypt has the ninth largest population of diabetic patients, said Mbanya.
At the current level, the diabetic population in the region is set to reach 44.5mn by 2025. This amounts to an alarming growth of 81% from the present level, Mbanya said.
Of the world population, at least 7% are diabetics-afflicted, pointed out the speaker.
The expert said at least two people are diagnosed of diabetes in every two seconds while at least one person dies of diabetes every 10 seconds.
While calling for efforts to strengthen the fight to control the disease, the IDF chief expressed confidence that even though diabetes could not be prevented, it could be effectively controlled with a change in one’s living style.
Owing to better treatment methods being adopted in North American and European continents, the countries in the two regions have been able to control the growth in recent years, he said.
The expected growth in the number of patients from the current level in North America and Europe is likely to touch 43% and 21%, respectively in 2025.
However, the growth in the South East Asian region and South America is expected to reach 100 % or more, by 2025.
Rosemary Shy, of Children’s Hospital of Michigan; Dr Abdullah Al-Hamaq, president, Qatar Diabetes Association; Dr Maryam al-Ali; and Dr Mahmoud Zirie, both from Hamad Medical Corporation, were the other speakers.