‘Healthy living and diabetes’
“HEALTHY Living and Diabetes” is the theme of the World Diabetes Day (WDD) campaign for 2014-2016 focusing on healthy eating and its importance in diabetes prevention and effective management to avoid complications. WDD is celebrated every year on November 14, led by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and its 200 member-associations in more than 160 countries, including in the Philippines. IDF engages millions of people worldwide in diabetes advocacy and campaign, whose key messages are: Make healthy food and easy choice; healthy eating – make the right choice; and healthy eating beings with breakfast.
WDD was created in 1991 by IDF and World Health Organization (WHO) in response to growing concerns about the diabetes health threat. According to IDF-WHO, there are 382 million people living with diabetes, 280 million at high risk, and 316 million at high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, posing a global problem worldwide. Throughout much of the world, up to half of all people with diabetes remain undiagnosed.
The day is celebrated on November 14 to mark the birthday of Canadian physician Frederick Banting who, along with his student Charles Best, discovered insulin in 1921. IDF and members, diabetes organizations, nongovernment groups, health agencies, and companies organize activities, including sports events, free diabetes screening, walk- athons, cycle races, fun runs and human blue circles, to drum up awareness on diabetes prevention, risks and complications, including foot and eye problems, kidney failure, and cardiovascular diseases. The WDD logo is a blue circle, the global diabetes symbol to signify unity.
Diabetes is lack or insufficient amount of insulin in the body, or insulin resistance, resulting in high glucose or sweetness in the blood. The range of conditions include diabetes mellitus type one and type two, and gestational diabetes – conditions which affect how the pancreas, an organ in the digestive system, secretes insulin. Type one cases are insulin-dependent, and sufferers have to inject the insulin hormone into their bodies to avoid organ damage. Type two cases is not insulin dependent. Gestational diabetes sometimes occurs in pregnant women. Depending on type and severity, diabetes is controlled by diet, weight loss, physical exercises, oral medication or injected or inhaled insulin.
In the Philippines, there are 3.4 million diabetes cases, affecting the lives of 9.7 of adult population. One out of every five Filipino adults having either diabetes or at risk of impaired glucose tolerance. Diabetes is the eight leading cause of death. Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90 percent of all cases in the country. Obesity is one of the risk factors for diabetes, resulting from Filipinos’ changing dietary habits showing an increase intake of rice, sugar and meat, but declining intake of fruits and vegetables.