Diabetes is spreading like an epidemic

Type II diabetes is spreading like an epidemic worldwide. At present, 9 million people have diabetes in Germany, and the number of unreported cases is probably much higher.

As apparently more and more people are suffering from the metabolic disease diabetes (or too „diabetes“), according to a report by the „Greenpeace Magazine“ Prof. Peter Schwarz from the Dresden University Hospital stresses the need for a nationwide diabetes registry.

The Dresden professor and president of the 6th World Congress on Diabetes Prevention, which took place in Dresden since April 9, had presented to the German Press Agency the experiences with such registers in other countries and showed that it could be used, for example. In Finland, the quality of diabetes treatments could have been increased and at the same time costs could be reduced.

According to Schwarz, there is an urgent need for action on diabetes, because the disease is spreading across the globe like an epidemic - for Germany this means: Almost 9 million diabetics and about 4 million additional cases in which those affected do not yet know about their disease. According to Schwarz, by the year 2020, 14 million diabetes patients could be affected, plus a "dark figure" of potentially up to six million people affected. But not the number of diabetics predicted for 2020 alone is cause for concern, because in many cases the disease also causes various secondary diseases such as Depression, high blood pressure, blindness or amputations that would mean another - not to be overcome - financial burden on the health system.

The construction of a nationwide register could bring clear advantages in view of the increasing number of patients. In this way, determine which secondary diseases occur more or less often after a diabetes mellitus - in heart attacks, for example, is assumed that in 70% of cases, diabetes is the main cause. Another positive effect of a diabetic registry would be for the professor to be able to provide better information, advice and legal information to patients - which in turn would make them more knowledgeable and self-confident about their physicians than before.

Since diabetes is often caused by obesity, among other factors, and according to Schwarz, one third of the German population has a genetic predisposition to being overweight, it is also necessary to take a more proactive approach to the disease nationally and throughout Europe than before. (sb, 10.04.2010)

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Type 1 diabetes: Can be treated without insulin?