Diabetes as the new epidemic in Nigeria

Mrs. Laolu Thomas apparently is alive and well. In fact, fascination with the intimate details of others’ lives seems to be part of human nature. There’s something amazing, even charming, about someone sharing parts of her life for public consumption. But when you make yourself available, you can also expect to be critiqued. Mrs. Thomas, […]

Mrs. Laolu Thomas apparently is alive and well. In fact, fascination with the intimate details of others’ lives seems to be part of human nature. There’s something amazing, even charming, about someone sharing parts of her life for public consumption. But when you make yourself available, you can also expect to be critiqued.

Mrs. Thomas, founder of The Numbers Foundation who is living with Type 2 Diabetes said the ultimate aim of the Numbers Foundation is to see that a bill is passed into law by the Federal Government mandating a two-minute test to check the blood glucose level of any patient as part of admission procedures.

According to her, this will quicken the discovery of un-diagnosed diabetics, pre-diabetics and border-line diabetics. It will begin a wave of nipping the spread of an otherwise non-communicable disease in the bud.

Mrs. Thomas also said the spread of diabetes can be stemmed through aggressive awareness campaigns, and public education on lifestyle choices especially for women and children.

Dr. Afoke Isiavwe, Consultant Endocrinologist/Medical Director, Rainbow Specialist Clinic, Lekki, who spoke at the event, explained how a positive family history, race, age and lifestyle choices are the major factors which had put most Nigerians at the risk of developing diabetes.

According to her, where a positive family history exists and wrong lifestyle choices like a high calorie diet and lack of physical activity are made, they lead to weight gain and obesity. Thirty  per cent of them will in the long run develop Type 2 diabetes. For women, she said the risk manifests when they begin to bear  children.

She posited that over indulgence, lack of training in food portion control and the drastic reduction in physical activity in children lead to obesity, which in turn leads to the evolvement of Type 2 diabetes in children from three  to 10 years old. The solution, she says, is the urgent introduction of lifestyle and nutrition education in schools for both teachers and children.

, Dr. Theophilus Umeizudike, Consultant Nephrologists with the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, who spoke about the interrelationship between hypertension and diabetes, explained that as the case with diabetes, hypertension is presented in higher percentages among black Africans and is a strong factor in the subsequent development of strokes, renal failure, cardiovascular disease and death.

In his opinion, the solution is an immediate adjustment of lifestyle choices, the development of a culture of exercise and a reduction in salt consumption as these are the best pre-emptive tactics that can stave off the development of this condition.

The two doctors were unanimous in calling for a comprehensive medical test when a person is diagnosed as hypertensive. This will help to find out the person’s risk for diabetes as the two conditions most times go hand in hand.

At the event, a Care Giver, Mrs. Roseline Babs-Jonah who has for the past 15years cared for her 86-year-old father living with Type2 diabetes, spoke on the dietary and lifestyle decisions she has had to make on his behalf and the difficulty of trying to curtail another person’s lifestyle choices.

Her position was re-iterated by Mrs. Chima of the Diabetes Association of Nigeria (DAN) Gbagada chapter, who has been living with diabetes for 10 years. She provided insight into the life of the diabetic on a first hand basis. They both encouraged the attendees to provide the emotional and mental support required by their friends and loved ones to effectively control the disease.

A health team from New Heights Pharma distributors of Omron brand of medical equipment and technical partners of The Numbers Foundation, were at the event to carry out non-invasive tests to determine the body mass indices, muscle mass, visceral fat composition and blood pressure levels of attendees.

Further technical support and partnership was provided by ISN Medical Limited, distributors of Accuchek range of glucometers. The Accuchek Active Glucometers were used at the event for accurate determination of fasting and random blood glucose levels of attendees.

Apart from organizing seminars and education series on diabetes, The Numbers Foundation also provides lifestyle, healthy and sustainable weight loss management consultancy to corporate bodies, church groups and the general public. The Foundation also engages in advocacy and support for less privileged diabetics.

Meanwhile, finding shows that that the prevalence of diabetes for all age groups worldwide was estimated to be 2.8 per cent in 2000 and 4.4 per cent in 2030. The number of people with diabetes is projected to rise from 171 million in 2000 to 366 million in 2030. The prevalence of diabetes is higher in men than women, but there are more women with diabetes than men. The urban population in developing countries is projected to double between 2000 and 2030. The most important demographic change to diabetes prevalence across the world appears to be the increase in the proportion of people around 65 years of age.

These findings indicate that the “diabetes epidemic” will continue even if levels of obesity remain constant. Given the increasing prevalence of obesity, it is likely that these figures provide an underestimate of future diabetes prevalence.