demand for a national project to combat diabetes and obesity in the Kingdom
Representative of the World Diabetes Federation: The costs of treating diabetes deplete 25% of the budgets of the Gulf countries
The representative of the World Diabetes Federation and CEO of the Qatar Diabetes Association, Dr. Abdullah Al-Hamq, expects that stem cells will be used in the treatment of diabetes within the next two years, as researchers seek to develop this treatment in cooperation with the Cancer Institute in Boston.
He revealed during the conclusion of the 2030 International Conference on Diabetes Control - Are we ready? Which is organized by the Saudi Society for Diabetes and Endocrinology in cooperation with Health Affairs in the Eastern Province, that finding an effective treatment for diabetes is soon, and the idea of treatment is to produce "beta cells" from stem cells that do not fight the immune system. This treatment will help maintain the balance of the immune system and will be an native For the usual anti-diabetic drugs and an effective treatment for the disease through several stages. This treatment will save approximately 25% to 30% of the costs of the recognized diabetes drugs.
Al-Hamq added that the incidence of diabetes increased recently, starting from the eighties until 2014, as a result of the change in the lifestyle in the Gulf region, the lack of movement and the lack of dependence on home meals and their replacement with fast food.
He said that the incidence rate is 3% annually of diabetes rates in the world, and he considered the incidence of diabetes in the Kingdom to be the highest in the Gulf countries, and continued we are keen to have direct contact between us and government agencies and the response of each government agency in the Gulf countries varies, and the trend now It is for scientific conferences concerned with diabetes, and there must be effective participation of decision-makers, bridging the gap between government agencies and health institutions, and paying attention to the issue of new young people. It is noticeable that there is no interest in children with diabetes. .
He pointed out that there is a global interest from international societies that are concerned with diabetes, and a global conference in this regard is held every two years to discuss developments in the disease, its latest developments and means of treatment, and the number of these societies exceeds two hundred, in addition to the European Diabetes Group.
Foolishness stressed the issue of prevention through health education and an attempt to reduce the costs of treating diabetes, which have depleted the budgets of health ministries in the Gulf by more than 25%, which calls for taking all necessary measures to combat the disease. The conference recommended a national project to combat diabetes and obesity in the Kingdom that includes 9 government agencies that adopt work to reduce the frightening rises of diabetes and obesity patients before reaching the "abyss", especially after the International Diabetes Federation revealed that by 2030 the number of people with diabetes will increase from 24% to 50% In the absence of programs and the unification of the efforts of the relevant ministries, the International Diabetes Federation expects 500 million people to be infected in the world in 2030.
The Secretary-General of the Association, Dr. Kamel Salama, had made it clear that the Kingdom ranks first in the prevalence of diabetes in the Middle East and North Africa, where the prevalence rate has reached 24%, and globally, the Kingdom ranks seventh in the prevalence of diabetes, according to official documented statistics.
He emphasized that the Kingdom is the highest in the Middle East and North Africa in the prevalence of first-degree diabetes in the age group between 10-14 years, with 31 children out of every 100,000 children who develop type 1 diabetes. He pointed out that the Kingdom ranks fifth in the world and third in the Gulf in obesity, as statistics indicate that 36% of the Kingdom’s population is obese, 44% of women are 26% of men, and the prevalence of obesity among the children of the Kingdom is 18%, at a rate of 3 million obese children 50% of them are exposed. For diabetes.
He noted that the Kingdom’s population statistics for the year 2012 showed that there are 7.5 million Saudis who are obese due to lack of movement, as the statistic found 33% of men and 50% of women do not exercise.
Salameh revealed that the cost of treating the patient is $ 1333 per person annually, while the Kingdom’s budget for 2014 is $ 236 billion, the Ministry of Health’s budget is $ 29 billion, and the cost of treating diabetes patients is approximately $ 10 billion, or 34% of the Ministry of Health’s budget spent on treating diabetes.
He said that the statistics of the International Diabetes Federation warns of an increase in the percentage of people with diabetes in the Kingdom from 24% to 50% and the injury of 500 million people by the year 2030 AD, which determined that diabetes will turn into an epidemic.
