On 2021 World Diabetes Day

by Fred Nwaozor

The last time I checked, November 14 annually remained World Diabetes Day. This signifies that last Sunday, the world over commemorated the remarkable event. The day, which is an annual and international commemoration, was instituted in the year 1991 by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) to help in raising public awareness on the dangers and control of diabetes. World Diabetes Day became an official United Nations (UN) Day in 2007 through the passage of the UN Resolution. The day was chosen in honour of the birthday of Frederick Banting who along with Charles Best first conceived the idea which led to the discovery of insulin in 1921.

It’s noteworthy that the campaign attached to the World Diabetes Day draws attention to issues of paramount importance to the diabetes community and keeps diabetes firmly in the public spotlight. The theme of this year’s anniversary is “Access to Diabetes Care”. It acknowledges that millions of people with diabetes around the world do not have access to diabetes care. It emphasizes that people with diabetes require ongoing care and support to manage their condition and avoid complications. The theme therefore stressed that we cannot wait any longer, hence urging stakeholders at all levels to provide the needed medicine, technologies, support and care for all people with diabetes that require them. It also enjoined governments to increase investment in diabetes care and prevention. Diabetes is a lifelong medical condition that causes a person’s blood sugar level to become too high. It is often caused by the insufficiency or lack of the hormone known as insulin, which is produced by the pancreas – a gland found behind the stomach.

The amount of sugar in the blood is controlled by insulin. When food is digested and enters the bloodstream, insulin moves glucose out of the blood and into the cells where it’s broken down to produce the required energy. However this implies that, if one has diabetes, his/her body is unable to break down glucose into energy; because there’s either not enough insulin to move the glucose or the insulin being produced doesn’t work properly. There are two main types of diabetes namely: Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes. The former is usually more delicate than the latter which is far more common. In Type 1 diabetes, the body’s immune system attacks and destroys the cells that produce insulin. As no insulin is produced, the victim’s glucose level increases, which can seriously damage his body’s organs. Type 1 diabetes is often regarded as Insulin-dependent diabetes; it is also sometimes recognized as Juvenile diabetes or Early-onset diabetes, because it mostly develops before the age of forty (40) or usually during the teenage years. If one is diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, he would need insulin injections for the rest of his life. He would also need to pay very close attention to certain aspects of his lifestyle and health, to ensure that his blood glucose levels stay balanced at all times.

Type 2 diabetes takes place when the body doesn’t produce enough insulin or it cells don’t react to insulin. This type of diabetes is generally known as Insulin-resistant diabetes. Since Type 2 diabetes is a progressive condition, the patient may eventually need medication mainly in the form of tablets. Type 2 diabetes is in most cases associated with obesity. Obesity-related diabetes is sometimes referred to as Maturity-onset diabetes owing to the fact that it is more common in older people. During pregnancy, some women possess high levels of blood glucose, which makes their body unable to produce enough insulin to absorb it all. Such condition is known as Gestational diabetes and it affects up to 18 in 100 women during pregnancy. Pregnancy can as well make existing Type 1 diabetes worse. Gestational diabetes can increase the risk of health problems developing in an unborn baby, therefore it’s very necessary for a pregnant woman to keep her blood glucose levels under control. Record has it that diabetes is the ninth leading cause of death in women globally, causing 2.1 million deaths per year. In several cases, gestational diabetes develops during the second trimester of pregnancy, which is weeks 14 to 26, and disappears after the baby is born. But the truth remains that, women who suffer from gestational diabetes are at an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes later in life. The general symptoms of diabetes, which often take place simultaneously, are: feeling very thirsty; urinating more frequently than usual, particularly at night; feeling very tired; weight loss and loss of muscle bulk; cuts or wounds that heal slowly; blurred vision, caused by the lens of the eye becoming dry; itching around the private part or frequent episodes of thrush.

Type 1 diabetes can develop quickly over weeks or even days; whilst, many people may have Type 2 diabetes for years without realizing it because the early symptoms tend to be friendly. Statistics, according to World Health Organization (WHO), show that about 347 million people worldwide are presently suffering from diabetes. In 2004, an estimated 3.4 million people died from consequences of high fasting blood sugar. The most devastating aspect of diabetes is that, almost half of the people suffering from it do not know that they have the disease. In view of this, WHO stipulates that diabetes would be the 7th leading cause of death by the year 2030. Many more people worldwide have blood sugar levels above the normal range, but not high enough to be diagnosed as having diabetes. This is referred to as Pre-diabetes. If your blood sugar level is above the normal range, your risk of developing full-blown diabetes is increased. Thus, it’s absolutely very important for diabetes to be diagnosed as early as possible because it would get progressively worse if left untreated.

In general, diabetes carriers are advised to eat healthily, take regular exercise and carry out regular blood tests in order to ensure that their blood glucose levels remain balanced. Above all, they are also advised to maintain a very cordial relationship with their doctors or health experts. As the global community commemorates the World Diabetes Day anniversary, I’m using this avenue to urge the general public to endeavour to live a life that would keep them away from contracting this dreaded disease that has claimed hundreds of millions of souls as well as maimed several lives both in the past and present. They can achieve this by ensuring they consume balance diets or staying away from constant intake of starchy or sugary foods without supplementing them with other required classes of foods. The sufferers of the disease ought to also note that they can live as long as possible if necessary precautions are always taken, or if they continually stick to the modus operandi surrounding the disease, such as eating healthily, indulging in regular exercise, carrying out blood tests regularly, and consistent intake of the prescribed drugs or frequent consultation of a physician, among others. Diabetes has no absolute cure but can be prevented, or managed if contracted. Hence, it’s worthy to acknowledge we have every opportunity to live without the disease, or live healthily if eventually infected with it. Think about it.