By Jenifer Libres
davaotoday.com
DAVAO CITY Medical experts in the city have expressed alarm over the publics lack of awareness on diabetes, the 7th leading cause of death in the Philippines.
A common misconception, according to Dr. Roy Ferrer of the Davao Medical Center, is that only adults get diabetes, and that that the fatter the child, the healthier he is. Nothing could be farther from the truth, Ferrer said.
“Most thought that when a child is fat, he is healthy. That’s not true, he said last week. Children who are fat have a higher possibility of acquiring this disease because they eat a lot of food that has large amount of sugar, which increases the sugar level in their blood.
Diabetes, when unchecked, can cause all sorts of organ failures and diseases, like stroke. People sometimes think that a stroke is caused by a heart attack, Ferrer said. They don’t know that sometimes diabetes caused it.
Doctors at the DMC deal with strokes every day and most of it, according to Dr. Francis Besas, a resident internist there, “are caused by diabetes.
During the observance of Diabetes Week last week, the DMC held activities to heighten awareness on what has been called the silent killer. The theme was,”Mabuti pa ang langgam, diabetes alam.”
Ferrer pointed out that one of the factors for diabetes is an unhealthy lifestyle, particularly among those who live in the urban areas. He recommends a daily exercises of at least 30 minutes, which he said can contribute a lot to healthy living. He also said one should have his or her blood sugar checked at least once a year.
According to Ferrer, incidents of diabetes nationwide have doubled since 1996. “In the latest survey, which was conducted in 1996, 4.6 percent of the total population in the country are diabetic,” he said.
For more information on diabetes, click here. (Jenifer Libres/davaotoday.com)
