Materia Medica Malaysiana

Diabetes also afflicting the young

Diabetes is no longer a sickness of those above the age of 30.

It is also hitting the young and hitting them hard.

Many above the age of 20 are already diabetic because of their eating habits and this is causing concern to the health authorities.

"Many of the victims are those aged 30 and above but what is of concern is that young children are also at risk because of their eating habits," the Deputy Director of Disease Control, Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar, said today.

He added that many above the age of 20 were already diabetic due to taking drinks with high sugar content and high calorie foods which had less fibre.

Dr Zainal said diabetes and its complications had given rise to social and economic problems for the patients, their families and the country.

Twelve per cent of the Malaysian population were affected by diabetes and it had become the nation's major growing problem, Dr Zainal told The New Straits Times.

More than 50 per cent of the complications and multiple complications of hospital patients were because they were diabetic and it was one of the leading causes of deaths.

Diabetes, which can cause blindness, renal diseases, loss of organs, vascular problems of legs, ulcers and impotency in men, is also a main cause of End State Renal Disease (ESRD) in the country.

The National Renal Registry statistics show that 44 per cent of the ESRD in need of dialysis are diabetic patients.

"Management of diabetes has become a great challenge in the 21st century," said Dr Zainal.

The prevalence of diabetes was found in 6.3 per 100,000 people during the first National Health Morbidity (NHM) survey in 1986 and the number rose to 8.3 per 100,000 people during the second NHM survey in 1996.

"We expect to see a further rise during the third NHM in 2006, especially with the young generation turning to high sugar content soft drinks, fast foods and having less physical activity," he added.

According to Dr Zainal, the highest prevalence of known diabetics by ethnicity was among Indians and it was due to genetic reasons and obesity.

However, he added, that in Malaysia the highest number of people suffering from diabetes were the Malays due their lifestyle and high sugar intake, while the Chinese suffered less due to their high intake of vegetables and fibre.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that 150 million people are affected by diabetes worldwide and it is likely to reach at least 300 million by 2025 if successful strategies are not implemented for its prevention and control.

The WHO estimates the prevalence of diabetes in Singapore, Brunei and Philippines to be about six to eight per cent of the adult population, while in Thailand and Indonesia it is four to six per cent and in Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos one to three per cent.

"Malaysians rarely self monitor themselves to check if they are diabetic, including Impact Glucose Tolerance," he said, adding that the fact that it was hereditary was another factor and those at risk never took the necessary precautions.

He said diabetes can be prevented or delayed and complications reduced through a healthy lifestyle, good nutrition, weight reduction, increased physical activity, not smoking and not consuming alcohol.

Dr Zainal said many Malaysians suffered from diabetes due to obesity, unhealthy diet and a sedentary lifestyle in association with urbanisation and industrialisation.

"Regular medical checks and screening will help prevent or control diabetes," he said, adding that people should also monitor their hypertension/blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

The Health Ministry has already started a cardiovascular risk factor screening programme, combined with diabetes risk factor and opportunistic screening in all its government hospitals and health centres nationwide.

Dr Zainal said when patients came with any form illness, they were also screened for hypertension, diabetes, cholesterol, Impact Glucose Tolerance and weight.

"If they are found with any of the above problems, they are immediately put on medication and if found to be on borderline, they are sent for targeted programmes provided at the hospital or centres," he added.

At present, Dr Zainal said, they were focussing on monitoring and registering all diabetes cases besides developing a diabetes registry and a diabetes surveillance system.

He added that several diabetes control and prevention programmes had also been put in place nationwide to create awareness among people on diabetes and how it could be prevented and controlled.