India – Diabetes Under Control

Interesting Facts About Diabetes In India And Around The World

Facts About Diabetes In India

Diabetes is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases in the world. Its growing number also affects the cases of various other health disorders, as it leads to many complications in the body. One of the countries to experience the wrath of this chronic disease severely is India. Almost 1 out of 6 people in the world with diabetes is from India, making it the second most affected country in the world. Knowing such facts about diabetes is important to understand the seriousness of the diseases and to become more aware of the drastic situation of diabetes.

What Are The Risk Factors Of Diabetes in India?

In India, it is common to migrate due to industrialization from rural to urban areas. Most of the time, diabetes is caused due to such environmental and lifestyle changes.

It has also been found that Indians have poorly managed blood pressure and cholesterol levels that can easily elevate the blood sugar levels in the body. The high prevalence rate of diabetes under 45 years of age may also cause several long term chronic complications in the body.

How Prevalent Is Diabetes in India?

There are about 77 million diabetes patients in India, making it the second-highest affected country in the world. According to the World Health Organisation, diabetes is one of the leading causes of deaths in India, causing almost 2% of the total deaths in the country.

In India, diabetes is almost equally prevalent in both men and women. However, it is more prevalent in people over 50 years of age. The prevalence rate in this age group was found to be 11.8%. However, below the age of 50 years, the prevalence rate of diabetes was found to be 5.7% and that of prediabetes to be 6.5%.

In India, the prevalence of diabetes was found to be higher in urban areas as compared to rural areas.

About 20-25% of diabetics in India are not overweight, concluding that Indians get diabetes even at lower body weight.

According to a survey, the diabetes population of the country is expected to rise to 134.3 million by 2045.

Facts About Diabetes In Children In India

According to a survey, India is home to 128,500 children and adolescents with diabetes. Out of these children, about 97,700 children have diabetes type 1. India has the second-highest number of children affected with type 1 diabetes in the world. Although type 1 diabetes is usually found among children in India, type 2 diabetes is also on a rise and many children are being affected by it. These numbers are just a glimpse of the diabetes situation in the country. The actual numbers may be much higher as most of the cases remain unreported.

Facts About Diabetic Retinopathy In India

Diabetic retinopathy is an eye complication caused due to diabetes. High blood sugar levels damage the blood vessels in the eye and cause vision loss or blindness. In India, out of the various complications caused due to diabetes, diabetic retinopathy is one of the most prevalent. Out of the diabetes patients aged up to 50 years of age, about 16.9% were found to be affected with diabetic retinopathy. The prevalence rate of diabetic retinopathy for diabetics aged 60-69 years was found to be 18.6%, whereas, for patients aged 70-79 years, it was found to be 18.3%. In the age group of 80 years and above, the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was 18.4%. The lowest prevalence rate was found in the age group of 50-59 years with 14.3%.

Prevention Is the Key To End Diabetes Epidemic

With the second-highest number of cases of diabetes in the world, India is fighting a diabetes epidemic. Reading these facts is not enough. We have to take every possible action to prevent the development of this disease.

Eat a healthy diet and maintain a healthy lifestyle to prevent the onset of diabetes.

Make sure that you are physically active and maintain a good body weight.

Stress is one of the leading reasons behind diabetes. Therefore, practice yoga and meditation regularly to alleviate stress.

These minor steps can create a huge difference and prevent the development of diabetes in your body. The government has also launched several programmes, such as the National Diabetes Control Programme, to curb the diabetes epidemic in India. This programme aims to identify individuals at risk of developing diabetes, provide early diagnosis and treatment to individuals affected with the disease, prevent complications caused due to diabetes and create awareness regarding the disease in the country.

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Reasons Diabetes Is Growing In India

Reasons For Escalation In The Number Of Diabetes Patients In India

Several researches have been done to understand the cause of the increased prevalence of diabetes in India. Some reports suggest the following to be the major reasons[2]:

Increased Insulin Resistance: Insulin resistance is the major known causes of diabetes worldwide. In India, the numbers of people having insulin resistance are found to be extremely high. Researched reports have found that Asians, including Indians, have a greater degree of insulin resistance as compared to Caucasians and other races.

Low Birth Weight: Studies suggest that low birth weight is a contributor to insulin resistance and it is reported that nearly 20% of newborns in India are born weighing below the suggested weight. This increases their risk of them developing diabetes later in life [3].

Genetics: Genetic susceptibility appears to play a crucial role in the development of diabetes in Indians, according to reports. However, diabetes type 2 appears to be a multifactorial health condition that is caused by a complex interplay of genetics or inheritance and environment.

Actions Taken By The Government Of India To Beat Diabetes

The epidemic of diabetes will not come to an end by simply managing the condition. Healthy people, especially the youth, need to be protected from falling prey to the condition. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW), with a key focus of reducing the risk factors of non-communicable diseases, has launched the “National Program for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke” (NPCDCS). The main objective of the program is to increase awareness on risk factors of the various non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including diabetes; to set up infrastructures to assist people with such conditions; and to carry out opportunistic screening at primary health care levels [5].

In response to the WHO Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of NCDs 2013-2020, Indian adopted the National Action Plan with exclusive national targets and indicators specifically selected to reduce the numbers of the global premature death that were caused due to diabetes and other NCDs, by approximately 25%. India was the first country to do so.

India’s plan to fight against diabetes and other NCDs include promoting the importance of being physically active, choosing healthy diets, quitting the consumption of tobacco, reducing the harmful use of alcohol, and through universal health coverage [5].