Daily Times

Above 537 million people in the world are living with diabetes, out of this 90 million people belong to South Asian countries, from which 33 million people in Pakistan are the victim of this health problem, Professor Dr Shamim Qureshi of the Department of Biochemistry, University of Karachi told here Friday.

She was speaking at a poster competition and seminar titled “Access to Diabetes Care: If Not Now, When’, organized by the Department of Biochemistry KU in collaboration with the University of Karachi Alumni Association (UKAA) Baltimore, Washington, USA at the KU Arts auditorium in connection with World Diabetes Day.

She said a high-fat diet and a sedentary lifestyle are contributing to an increase in the prevalence of type 2 diabetes around the world and it is affecting one in four adults in Pakistan, which is very alarming. That’s why Pakistan ranked second in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) having a high number of diabetic patients, she said.

The other speakers of the seminar were Dr Muhammad Zafar Iqbal Abbasi from Baqai Institute of Diabetology and Endocrinology, Dr Arisha Salman Assistant Professor Department of Biochemistry of Dow International Medical College, and Dr Sadaf Ahmed Assistant Professor Department of Physiology, KU.

Dr Zafar Abbasi highlighted the importance of diabetes education require to access diabetes care. He said that the sad news was after 100 years of insulin discovery, still many people don’t have easy access to diabetes care. He also emphasized the importance of foot care for diabetic patients.

Meanwhile, Dr Arisha Salman from DUHS highlighted gestational diabetes (GD). She told that GD was a common medical complication of pregnancy.

“Raising awareness and good pre-pregnancy preparation are keys for women of childbearing age with risks of GD. Early diagnosis and timely interventions are crucial in women with GD to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes and subsequent type 2 diabetes”, she expressed.

Dr Sadaf Ahmed emphasized the impact of diabetes and stress on the health and well-being of a person. She said social, political, financial, and educational status is poor in Pakistan, which leads to stresses that the release of the diabetogenic hormone cortisol which affects insulin sensitivity and down-regulating insulin-stimulated glucose transport and lipid uptake as a result of which blood glucose levels become increased and person prone to diabetes.

Dr Tipu Sultan, the Chancellor of Malir University of Science and Technology was the chief guest of the event. He emphasized that awareness of diabetes was necessary to save our tomorrow. He admired the presence of a huge number of students in the audience and their active participation during the session.