Because there is a 1 in 3 chance you will get
diabetes in your lifetime in Singapore.
When it
comes to making statements about revolutions that need to be won, few nations
are as resolute and focused as Singapore. So when the nation’s Ministry of
Health (MOH) declared war on diabetes, the ministry had plenty of ammunition
marshalled to call the public’s attention to this life-threatening disease. If
you or your family have already begun to wage war on diabetes, you know that
it’s a battle worth winning.
Perhaps
the most vocal spokesperson on the subject of how diabetes impacts Singapore
society, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong recently stated that this ailment is
costing the nation more than $1 billion a year to help 400,000 diabetics of all
ages who suffer from it.
Sadly,
it’s estimated that one in three people don’t do what’s necessary to combat the
ailment in order to live longer, healthier lives — and some haven’t even
considered the fact that they may have it or refuse to have their suspicions
confirmed.
To show
the country’s seriousness of purpose, Mr. Gan led a heated debate in Parliament
on 13 April when the subject of Singapore’s annual and projected healthcare
budgets came up. Pleading for nationwide awareness, Mr. Gan wasn’t timid about
recounting the consequences of undetected, untreated or poorly managed diabetes
that too often results in “heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and
amputations” for Singaporeans.
“We want to help Singaporeans live life free from diabetes
and, for those with the disease,
to help them control their condition to prevent
deterioration”.
Singapore Health Minister Gan Kim Yong
How
serious has this illness become? Every day, four citizens lose an extremity —
hands, toes, feet, legs, arms — as a result of complications from diabetes,
reason enough to throw down the gauntlet and declare war. And since we are
always in the mood for a good battle, we’ve joined the fray and hope to use our
influence to change the diabetes landscape across the land, too.
What you should know
What is
diabetes? This metabolic disease strikes when the body can’t produce insulin or
isn’t able to produce enough insulin to keep glucose levels in the blood stable
and the body functioning properly.
At its
most extreme, diabetes can lay dormant in a person’s body and show itself only
once it’s reached an advanced state. Education is a valuable tool here, so learn
more about this disease and you’ll be in a better position to make a
determination about yourself and your loved ones.
Type 1
Diabetes is the most serious form of the disease because it doesn’t necessarily
stem from poor diet, lack of exercise and bad living habits. People are born
with Type 1 diabetes and it is most often diagnosed after a child or adult
experiences increased thirst, frequent urination, extreme fatigue, weight loss
and/or blurred vision.
Type 2
Diabetes can be asymptomatic and go undetected for a long while before the
aforementioned symptoms present themselves. This type of diabetes is
lifestyle-based and diagnosed in children and adults who are overweight, don’t
exercise and abuse their bodies. While there is no cure for Type 1 diabetes,
people who adopt healthy diets, exercise and lose weight have been cured of
Type 2 after making lifestyle changes.
Gestational
diabetes is a less frequent, yet equally serious, type of this sickness. It
presents itself as a result of hormonal changes in pregnancy and can cause
troubling complications that include premature birth and babies that weigh more
than average. Once the mother gives birth, gestational diabetes can go into
remission and may or may not present itself with successive pregnancies over
time.
Why you should take diabetes seriously
As a
Singapore citizen, it’s important to know how a disease like diabetes can
affect an entire nation of people dramatically. Here are facts of which you
should be mindful:
Are you
aware of the fact that research shows that Asians are more at risk from
diabetes than people of other races?
Did you
know that 0.35-percent of Singapore’s GDP is allocated to healthcare spending
and this trend shows no sign of slowing?
By 2050,
if there’s no appreciable turnaround in the number of people being diagnosed,
the nation’s cost to care for this population will jump from $1 billion in 2010
to $2.5 billion per year.
A
National University of Singapore/University of California study predicts that
by 2050, every working-age diabetic in Singapore will run up $10,596 in health
care costs to treat it (that figure was $7,678 in 2010).
If no
changes are made in the nation’s diabetic population, kidney failure, blindness
and amputations — the most extreme manifestations of either diabetes type — are
expected to increase exponentially.
Because
Singaporeans have adopted western lifestyle habits — eating unhealthy foods and
avoiding exercise - if this trend isn’t reversed, diabetes has the potential to
impact economic growth and employment, according to diabetes specialist Dr. Lee
Chung Horn.
Contemporary weapons in the war on diabetes
Dietary
changes, recommended by medical practitioners and dieticians, are the first
step in caring for oneself if diabetes is diagnosed or suspected in conjunction
with exercise, because in combination, they help sufferers of both Type 1 and 2
live longer, healthier lives.
Type 1
diabetes is usually treated with insulin injections, pills and new formulations
of drugs on the market. Some doctors may prescribe a “pump” to administer
insulin as needed through a pot in the body.
According
to Healthline Networks, these are the most frequently prescribed medications
for diabetes at present:
§ Short-acting meds like
Humulin and Novolin,
§ Rapid-acting insulins
like NovoLog, FlexPen, Apidra and Humalog,
§ Intermediate-acting
drugs like Humulin, Novolin and Iletin,
§ Long-lasting formulas
like Levemir and Lantus.
Each must
be taken in specific doses and depending on the severity of the diabetes, may
be increased, decreased or prescribed in combination.
While
medicines help combat this disease, diet is critical to manage both types of
diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends a balanced diet of
vegetables, whole grains, fruits, lean meats, poultry, fish, some dairy
products and fats.
According
to WebMD, the worst choices a diabetic can make include processed foods, sugary
cereals, too much fat and canned foods (excess sodium).
Diabetics
should avoid deep-fried foods and stick to non-fat dairy products. Energy
drinks, coffees, sweetened teas, beer, spirits and soft drinks can exacerbate
symptoms and require moderation.
Central
to any diabetic’s regular routine is the addition of exercise. While we believe
that running can be the best form of exercise, all sorts of activities help the
body deal with this malady, particularly since the reason extremities are at
risk of amputation is so often the result of poor circulation that comes about
when people with diabetes diagnoses lead sedentary lifestyles.
How we plan to help
As a
publication with a faithful and loyal following of runners and athletes, we
hereby commit to doing everything we can to inform, educate and help our
readers understand and deal with all aspects of diabetes.
It is our
intention to shine a spotlight on those who are leading the advance on the
disease, from the new Diabetes Prevention and Care Taskforce under Acting
Education Minister Ng Chee Meng to organizations in need of our help promoting
healthy lifestyles as a way to combat and fight on the home front.
e agree
with Mr. Gan when he states that, "The war on diabetes will not be a quick
battle, but a long war requiring sustained efforts." Our efforts to
promote healthy lifestyles will increase, as we encourage people to lose weight
through running, cross-training and diet.
As
always, we continue to advocate on behalf of the nation’s efforts to curb
smoking rates, since this too can contribute to one’s risk of diabetes.
Further,
we plan to keep reminding readers of the importance of early screening and intervention
since better outcomes are found after early detection, particularly as this
impacts a major portion of our audience, ages 20 to 39.
Is this
war? You bet. But sometimes, it takes a war to raise awareness about what
really matters in life, so count on us to soldier on in every way we can to be
a player on this important stage!
Toward
that end, we hope to profile successful diabetics who have taken control over
their disease as a result of making healthy diet and exercise changes.
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