AN ALARMING increase in the number of people with diabetes, especially young people, warrants a comprehensive government approach to head off any likely burden on public health. Research show that, especially, Type 2 diabetes, which is usually evident in people aged more than 40 years, is increasing in children and young people, pushing up the overall number of people suffering from diabetes. A study that the Non-Communicable Disease Control Programme of the Directorate General of Health Services and the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh conducted on 2,468 individuals aged 15鈥�35 years in the eight divisions in August鈥揙ctober 2021, which has established the phenomenon, says that a staggering 43 per cent of all the people with diabetes are not screened for the disease. This significantly adds to the risks, warranting early government measures for nationwide screening for the disease, at least, to assess the situation so that an effective plan to fight against the disease could be worked out and put to work. Physicians blame inadequate awareness campaigns, an unhealthy way of life and widespread pollution for such a situation, stressing the need for a healthy way of life, adequate sleep and physical exercise to make an effective intervention in the reversal of the situation.
There are an estimated 11,000 people with Type 1 diabetes, which mainly affects children and about 25 million people with Type 2 diabetes, many of whom are children. Bangladesh has some 200,000 people with diabetes who are aged below 16 years. Experts believe that the increase in the number of people with Type 2 diabetes results from a high incidence of the type in children. Early-age diabetes causes early complications, including vision loss, nerve damage and heart diseases. Bangladesh is now ranked in the eighth position in the world in terms of the number of people with diabetes; and, the situation is feared, in keeping with an estimation of the International Diabetic Federation, to worsen, by slipping by a notch to rank in the seventh position by 2045. It is estimated that of the total number of people with diabetes in Bangladesh, 5 per cent were aged below 18 years in 2018, but the percentage was below 3 a decade ago. Experts say that the incidence of diabetes is growing in children mainly because of obesity, a sedentary way of life and changing sleep habits. Experts view that children sleeping less than six hours or more than nine hours are more vulnerable to Type 2 diabetes. An excessive consumption of processed food is also blamed for the high incidence of the disease.
In such a situation, experts put out a call for a nationwide screening for diabetes to assess the situation and work out a comprehensive approach for an effective remedial. The government should also run awareness campaigns to arrest the increase in childhood diabetes. The government should expand the non-communicable disease control plan down to upazila healthcare facilities to head off any growing burden on public health.
