RIYADH, 22 March — The Kingdom, where 10 percent of the population suffer from diabetes, is spending five billion Saudi riyals annually to check the alarmingly growing rate of this disease. This is, in fact, a loss directly or indirectly inflicted on the Saudi government as it bears the cost of treatment and hospitalization besides being affected by the loss of productivity and working hours.
“This disease will assume epidemic proportion during the next 25 years in Saudi Arabia as it has registered an increase of 15 to 20 percent annually”, cautioned Mohamed Anwar, manager for diabetes care and axid product at Eli Lilly and Company, here today. He said that the diabetes has been affecting blood vessels, eyes, kidney, nerves, nervous system, blood and connective tissues of the local population.
Diabetes, he said, could also cause coma and eventually death. Females in the Kingdom are the worst affected, said Anwar, whose company has won the “Best Company of Year 2001” award for diabetes control. On behalf of Diabetes Center of Saudi Arabia, Prof. Khaled Al-Robaian, director of the center, presented the award.
A total of 35 certificates were also presented to Saudi diabetes educators, who will be deployed in the field to disseminate information about this disease.
Referring to the causes of this disorder, he said that diabetes is caused when the body does not produce enough insulin to maintain normal blood sugar levels or when cells don’t respond appropriately to insulin.
The resulting insulin deficiency is severe and to survive, a person must regularly inject insulin. This is called insulin-dependent diabetes, which has affected some six percent of population in the US, he explained.
In non-insulin dependent diabetes, Anwar further said, the pancreas continue to manufacture insulin, sometimes even at higher than normal levels. Obesity is a risk factor for this type of diabetes, he said.
