Experts at the Saudi National Center of Diabetes have warned against the alarming increase in diabetes cases in the Kingdom, saying that the current awareness campaigns are insufficient to curb the disease which has grown considerably in the past few years.

There is a pressing need to take preventive measures to minimize the risks of the disease and reduce the cost of the economic burdens borne at family or government levels, Al-Riyadh daily said quoting the experts.

Head of the National Center of Diabetes Dr. Zuhair Al-Ghiribi said the volume of spending on the disease is estimated at SR4 billion annually whereas the growth rate of infection stands at 1 percent per year. Based on the latest studies, direct (drugs, follow-ups) and indirect (patient families) spending on the disease stands at SR12 billion and SR40 billion respectively, he said adding that there are currently 3 million people with diabetes in the Kingdom.

The increased obesity rates are playing a key role in the growth of diabetes which leads to chronic infections resulting in at least one or two cases of limb amputations per day in the country’s major hospitals.

The experts called for the improvement of the disease control mechanisms, creation of new awareness channels to educate communities and the introduction of optimal solutions to minimize the occurrence of the disease.