Health sector stakeholders see proper health care and awareness as solution to Nigeria’s more than 1.5 million diabetes cases.
The stakeholders made this known at recent diabetes and other non-communicable diseases meeting organised by the Federal Ministry of Health in collaboration with Strategies for Improving Diabetes Care in Nigeria (SIDCAIN) and the World Adequate care (WDF), in Abuja.
According to the International Diabetes Federation’s estimate, about 415 million people have diabetes and more than 14 million of them live in sub-Saharan Africa; by 2040 these figures will double, as Nigeria accounted for more than 1.5 million cases of diabetes in 2015.
As a solution, the stakeholders said proper support and education prevent long-term complications.
“Yet, the disease can be combated, and its costs to individuals and societies decreased. The prevalence of diabetes and other non-communicable disease (NCD) is greatly reduced when people are provided with the knowledge and support to live healthier lives. For those who develop NCDs, proper care and education prevent long-term complications and protect quality of life,” Alebiosu Christopher, the principal investigator of SIDCAIN, said.
According to Christopher, to address this growing threat, SIDCAIN has worked with the Nigerian Ministry of Health and others to improve Nigeria’s capacity to prevent and treat the disease.
“We look forward to this opportunity to showcase our work and its impact, and to support the effort of state and federal authorities and others across Nigeria who are working to improve diabetes care in our country.
“For the past nine years, SIDCAIN has been raising awareness among major stakeholders on the need to improve NCD, and especially diabetes care in Nigeria,” he said.
Diabetes is a serious life-long health condition that occurs when the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood is too high because the body cannot use it properly. Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas; it is required to transport glucose from the bloodstream into the body’s cell where it is used as energy.
The most common diabetes symptoms include frequent urination, excessive thirst, increased hunger, weight loss, fatigue, lack of interest and concentration, cut and bruises that do not heal, among others.
Nnenna Ezeigwe, director of NCDs in Federal Ministry of Health, said, “Diabetes is one of the major public and development challenges of the 21st Century.
“By bringing so many key partners together, we hope to foster more cooperation and synergies between the people and projects fighting diabetes and other NCDs in Nigeria.”
Anders Dejgaard, managing director, World Diabetes Foundation (WDF), said the organisation had been funding projects to improve diabetes prevention, awareness and care in Nigeria since 2008.
“We hope that this meeting encourages even more networking and action between WDF project partners and relevant stakeholders from all sectors in Nigeria,” Dejgaard said.
Anthonia Obokoh
