Diabetes in Midlands
Sunday 24th January 2010 00:00
Diabetes is set to double by 2025 in the Midlands, as a result of the region’s growing Obesity Crisis.
Presently 225,000 people in the Midlands are diagnosed with Diabetes; while a further 50,000 are unaware they have the condition. Eight out of Ten people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes are over weight.
The West Midlands has the highest levels of obesity in women, with 60 percent classified as over weight or obese and 66 percent of men are in the same categories. Such an increase can lead to complications such as Heart Disease, Blindness, Kidney Disease and Amputation.
This puts a financial strain on the NHS, which spends about £10,000 per minute on treating diabetes and related health conditions and a further £130 million on medication.
Awareness and prevention are crucial if we want to avoid a crisis. To reduce the risk of Type 2 Diabetes, we need to encourage people to develop a healthy balanced diet, being physically active and quitting smoking can help reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 64 percent.
Men with waist wider than 37 inches and women whose measurement is over 31.5 inches are more at risk. South Asian men face a risk if their waists are bigger than 35 inches.
Diabetes can remain undetected for up to 12 years, and one in two may already have serious complications by the time Diabetes is diagnosed.
