Awareness week tells public ...


Potentially causing limb amputation, stroke, blindness and heart disease, diabetes is too serious to ignore.


That is the theme of National Diabetes Week this week which aims to warn the public about the epidemic which affects 1.5 million Australians.


One person is diagnosed with diabetes every seven minutes. And Diabetes Australia NSW branch president Neville Howard said it will get worse before it improves.

“If the present trend continues, two million Australians will have diabetes by 2010,”

Dr Howard said.

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An Otago University professor says more and more teenagers are developing type-two diabetes as a result of an obesity epidemic.


The Professor of General Practice, Murray Tilyard, says treating the disease is becoming harder because of the rise in obesity.


Professor Tilyard says a new kit, being launched by Pharmac today to help health professionals and patients manage the disease, should help in dealing with the symptoms of diabetes.


But he says lifestyle changes are needed for many people to manage their weight and reduce the risk of contracting diabetes in the first place.

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The Federal Government says it is alarmed but not surprised by new figures showing Australia is in the grip of a diabetes epidemic.


The Australian Diabetes Obesity and Lifestyle Study interviewed and tested 11,000 people five years ago to provide a snapshot of the nation's health.


Two thirds were tested again to see whether they had gained weight or developed diabetes.

The research found there are 100,000 new cases of the illness every year and adolescents and children are among Type 2 diabetes sufferers.


Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott says Australians need to take greater responsibility for their health.

"These are quite alarming findings, they aren't I'm afraid entirely unexpected," he said.
"Excess eating and too little exercise makes people fat not the ads themselves."
"The Government can not make people walk to work, we can't make people walk to school."

But Professor Paul Zimmet says community infrastructure must support this.
Diabetes and obesity costs the country $3 billion a year and that figure is tipped to dramatically increase in the future.

Opposition health spokeswoman Julia Gillard says the Federal Government needs to take action to help prevent children from contracting diabetes.

"To make sure that the next generation of Australians aren't captive to this epidemic of diabetes, let's at least take responsibility for Australia's children and have government programs in place to address obesity, diet and exercise,"

she said


Source: ABC News