Acknowledgement – https://defeatdiabetes.org/
If every person with diabetes lived in the same country it would be the third most populated on the planet and the numbers continue to grow.
It is also a killer. In Europe alone one person dies ever six seconds of a diabetes related condition.
The focus is on the Corona virus but those who care about diabetes should not ease off their advocacy for this other pandemic.
As the Covid19 scare continues to grip the world, doctors warn that those with underlying conditions such as diabetes should be extra careful.
Dr Altamash Shaikh, consultant endocrinologist, diabetologist and metabolic specialist at Masina hospital in Mumbai, said: “Their (people with diabetes) immunity is low and their chances of developing complications resulting from infections is very high.”
The early data is inconclusive as to whether diabetes patients are at a higher risk to get COVID-19 infection. Although it is established that where glucose is uncontrolled diabetes reduces immunity and increases the complications resulting from a secondary bacterial infection.
Until we get some data on how many of the reported deaths had underlying health conditions and that these were connected to diabetes we cannot know for sure.
Advocacy Action: Can you ask for the data on the numbers of covid19 deaths connected with diabetes, which type and the age of the patient.? Can this data be shared with other countries? Can you ask in light of Covid19, how your Government is going to cooperate more effectively with others to tackle other and future challenges?