Azerbaijan sees decreases in number of diabetes death

/AzerNews/

By Amina Nazarli

For many men, women and children, diabetes means the end of their normal life.

However, it is not so necessarily. Millions of people living with the disease have shown enormous strength and resilience tackling the complex physical and emotional challenges posed by the disease.

Measures adopted to fight diabetes for 2011-2015” have already been approved by the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers. Thanks to this program which paves the way for free distribution of blood glucose meters and test systems among patients, lots of problems in this field have been removed.

The death toll from diabetes has decreased from 21.7 percent to 7,5 percent for every 100,000 people in Azerbaijan, the Health Ministry said on November 13.

In 2013, the number of diabetic patients, which was diagnosed for the first time stood at 24,182 people, 3,510 out of them were insulin-dependent and 20,426 - not dependent insulin diabetes patients.

Azerbaijan ranks the 127th in terms of diabetes patients' number among the 221 states, according to the International Diabetes Federation in 2013.

Diabetes is one of the three diseases, most often leading to disability. It is the third cause of deaths after cancer and heart disease.

“Specialists raise the alarm about the rapidly increasing number of people suffering from this disease, including in Azerbaijan,” said Rauf Jabbarov, head of the Azerbaijan Republican Center of Endocrinology.

He noted that the main reasons behind the disease are unhealthy lifestyle, poor diet and stress.

“There are two types of diabetes: the first one is observed in young people, while the second one in older people - insulin-dependents. What is more, 85-95 percent of ill people belong to the second category. The disease is commonly found in people who suffer from overweight, sedentary and malnourishment,” Jabbarov noted.

November 14 sees the World Diabetes Day. It is marked mainly to raise global awareness about the diabetes across the world. The day was introduced in 1991 by the International Diabetes Federation and the World Health Organization in response to the alarming rise of diabetes around the world.

The International Diabetes Federation encourages all diabetic society to inform and educate the population about the disease.

The latest estimates show that there are 382 million people living with diabetes worldwide. By 2035, 592 million people or one person in ten of the global population will be diagnosed with the disease.