Diabetes: Why you should check your blood sugar level

-And how family support is critical in preventing, managing it   Medical experts have said it is important for people to check their blood sugar level regularly to detect diabetes early and also ensure that the blood glucose level of those who already have the disease is in a healthy range. They said it is […]

-And how family support is critical in preventing, managing it

 

Medical experts have said it is important for people to check their blood sugar level regularly to detect diabetes early and also ensure that the blood glucose level of those who already have the disease is in a healthy range.

They said it is very important for people who have close relatives who suffer from diabetes to go to hospital to check their blood sugar.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), diabetes is a serious, and persistent disease in which blood sugar is elevated.

“It may either be due to the pancreas not producing enough insulin called Type 1 diabetes,” says Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, or the body being unable to effectively use the insulin it produces called Type 2 diabetes.”

She said over 90% of diabetes is Type 2 diabetes, which If not well controlled, may cause blindness, kidney failure, lower limb amputations and other complications.

Dr Nura Umar Sanda, a physician said Type 2 diabetes is the most common type in Africa and usually starts from 40 years and above while Type 1 is very common in Europe and other climes and could start from childhood.

“If any of your parents or sibling has diabetes, try and go to the hospital and check your blood sugar, if it is high measures will need to be taken as diabetes grows slowly and affects other organs.

“If it is detected early, you may just need diet, exercise and healthy lifestyle but if it is detected at a late stage, it then requires taking drugs and insulin injections every day.

“So people should try and go to the hospital to check their blood sugar. It is not expensive. It is just N500,” Dr Sanda said during an awareness walk and free screening exercise organised by the Diabetes Help and Enlightenment Organisation (DHEO) in collaboration with Nisa Premier Hospital and the Nigeria Police Force in Abuja to mark this year’s  World Diabetes Day.

Dr Hauwa Bala, another physician said diabetes could affect anyone in the family, and that family support is critical in preventing and managing the disease.

“Diabetes is a generic disorder which is chronic and almost like a life time illness. So support from the family members for whoever the patient is in the house is very important. It will help the patient get and adhere to his or her medications, make the food in the house more diabetic friendly, and make the patient and family live healthier and happier,” she advised.

She has called on the Federal Government to make the treatment of diabetes free.

There was a talk on prevention and management, free blood sugar screening and talk.

The founder of Diabetes Help and Enlightenment Organisation (DHEO), Hajiya Aisha Bukar Ali, said over 7 million people live with diabetes in Nigeria and called on the Federal Government to prioritize the disease same way it has done for HIV and polio.

She said people should not see diabetes as a death sentence once they are diagnosed with the disease because it could be managed with healthy lifestyles.

She said: “You can manage it through being mindful of what you eat, exercise and keeping  to your medication as well as follow up with your doctor.”

The foundation offered health talk on diabetes, free blood sugar screening, blood pressure check and Body Mass Index check for residents as part of the commemoration of the World Diabetes Day.