By Peter Townson
Qatar Diabetes Association (QDA) has joined forces with Harvard Medical’s American College of Endocrinology, GlaxoSmithKline and Hamad Medical Corporation to offer a course for medical practitioners about diabetes and its associated dangers.
Some 200 physicians from governmental and private medical organisations across Qatar, attended the course, who learnt about diabetes and the complications associated with the condition.
This is the first time the course has been taken outside of the US, and the organisers explained that they chose to arrange the course in Qatar because of the high level of prevalence of diabetes in the country and the region, with four Gulf states within the top 10 countries in the world in terms of levels of diabetes, and some 16% of the population in Qatar expected to have the disease.
Officials explained that diabetes is becoming more of a problem throughout the world, with the rates of diabetes expected to increase across the globe in the coming years. Whilst the US is expected to see a 52% increase and Europe an increase of around 27%, the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern region is expected to experience a rise of some 105% by 2012 - a worrying statistic for healthcare professionals in the region.
Harvard Medical’s Dr Osama Hamdy explained that in the US, the course involves a before and after examination, with participants in the course typically displaying a 117% improvement in their knowledge about diabetes.
“Most of the participants request that we repeat the course on an annual basis,” he claimed, “so we believe that this is something that will contribute towards the development of Qatar.”
“Qatar has become a leader in so many fields, we think that it should also be a leader in the field of diabetes treatment,” he added.
He explained that there are a number of reasons for the high prevalence of diabetes in the region, with the main being the problem of obesity and its related complications. As well as this, there are genetic reasons why people from the Gulf are more likely to suffer from diabetes, but the large number of obese or overweight people - especially children - combined with a lack of activity or exercise and poor nutrition, are the major contributory factors to the high levels of people suffering from diabetes.
Dr Hamdy explained that people must reduce their intake of carbohydrates and increase their levels of exercise to reduce their chances of getting diabetes in the future.
Education about nutrition and healthier living must be introduced in schools, he argued, adding that parental advice and the need for parents to be role models for their children, are also important aspects of attempting to reduce the levels o diabetes throughout the world.
He also called for a government ban on ‘all-you-can-eat’ buffets and urged families to eat smaller portions, rather than indulging in buffets which encourage diners to overeat. |
