The world faces a staggering diabetes epidemic as poor diet and inactive lifestyles result in people being afflicted at an ever younger age, a major conference on the disease heard on Monday.
”The biggest challenge of today is to communicate the magnitude of the epidemic throughout the world,” Pierre Lefebvre, outgoing president of the International Diabetes Federation [IDF], told delegates on the first day of a four-day meeting in Cape Town.
A statement issued by the IDF at the meeting said the epidemic was out of control and affected ”a staggering 246-million people worldwide”.
”Previous figures under-estimated the scope of the problem, while even the most pessimistic predictions fell [short] of the current figure,” the document said.
Lefebvre expressed particular concern about the rising number of children and adolescents being afflicted by type 2, usually adult-onset, diabetes.
”There is no doubt that this is linked to the epidemics of overweight and obesity, and there is no doubt that this increase in overweight and obesity is linked to the profound way in which the life of those children and adolescents has changed over the past ten to 20 years.”
Lefebvre cited ever-increasing consumption of fatty fast foods and a syndrome dubbed ”nintendo-nisation” of children choosing computer games and television over physical activity.
”This is really, really a matter of grave concern.”
The IDF would launch strong action, he said, for the proper labelling of food and drink sold to children, and advocate for a major change in attitude towards healthy living.
But this could prove difficult given the somewhat skewed priorities of the world, said Lefebvre.
While $3,5-billion was spent on fast-food advertising in the United States in 2001, and another $5,8-billion on advertising for food, confectionery and beverages, the US centre for disease control and prevention (CDC) had a budget of $5,1-billion and the Food and Drug Administration $1,3-billion, he told the congress. — AFP
