Diabetes in Society

In every series of Diabetes Voices, we present individuals from all over the world who share their perspective on life with diabetes. In this instalment, three people living with diabetes share their volunteering experience in the diabetes community and how it has changed any aspect or perspective of living with the condition.

Do you remember the day you were diagnosed and what you felt when the doctor told you why you were unwell?

“You have developed a condition called diabetes.”

Every newly diagnosed individual with diabetes arrives with three questions:

Why me?
What did I do?
How will it affect my lifestyle?

More than seven million people have diabetes in Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world. Prevalence of diabetes in 2013 exceeded 9% and it is estimated that diabetes is responsible for more than 80,000 deaths each year.¹ The increase in life expectancy of the global population, combined with a poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle are contributing to higher rates of type 2 diabetes and Brazil is no exception.

The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) estimates that over 382 million people currently live with diabetes globally. This accounts for 11% of the adult population and is projected to increase to near 592 million by 2035. The data reveals that over 80% of persons living with diabetes are from developing countries.

Promoting oral health is essential in order to prevent and reduce the negative consequences of type 2 diabetes and to maintain good health.¹ Tragically, periodontal disease significantly contributes to the risk of dying from diabetes.

Barriers to successful diabetes self-management in low-income populations include reduced access to healthy food along with limited awareness of healthy eating. In the United States, it is a public health paradox that those at the highest risk for obesity and type 2 diabetes are the most food insecure, meaning unable to consistently afford or have access to enough healthy food to meet their nutritional needs.¹

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is glucose intolerance that begins or is first identified during pregnancy.

Just over 8.3% of the global population has diabetes.¹ Increasing age is a significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes but the diagnosis is often missed or delayed because the clinical presentation is different from that in younger people. Diabetes is a major cause of complications, reduced quality of life and changed physical and mental functioning in older people.^2,3,4 It is also a leading cause of death in older people from cardiovascular and other related medical co-morbidities. In addition, many older people have additional risk factors for diabetes and may have undiagnosed complications.