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Qatargas in partnership with Qatar Diabetes Association (QDA) will host a ‘Diabetes Awareness Day’ at the Qatargas Winter Camp in the Sealine area at Mesaieed on Saturday.
More than 500 people, diabetic patients and their families, including Qatargas employees, are expected to participate in the activities.
QDA, a member of Qatar Foundation, will deliver awareness sessions on diabetes during the programme. Blood sugar tests will also be carried out. There will also be plenty of fun and games for the children, including bouncy castles and other activities. Adults will have opportunities for various exercises.
The details of the event were announced at a press conference held at Qatargas’ Doha head office yesterday. Qatargas public relations manager Mansour Rashid al-Naimi, Qatargas chief medical officer Dr Osama Ibrahim, QDA executive director Dr Abdulla al-Hamaq and QDA programme manager Sharoud Matthis attended.
Al-Naimi said: “Diabetes is a major health concern in Qatar and the region and requires consolidated efforts from all sections of the society to raise awareness, both in terms of preventive measures, and to cope with diabetes and live comfortable lives. Qatargas believes that supporting such campaigns contributes to building a healthy population, which is a key objective of the human development pillar of Qatar’s National Vision 2030.”
He added that the support to this event stems from Qatargas’ efforts in promoting health and community development as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility programmes.
Dr al-Hamaq commented: “At this event, we will have a variety of educational activities that aim to reach people with diabetes and those who are at risk, and provide them with information about diabetes, how to control it and to prevent it.”
He said that a sedentary life style puts people in danger of obesity and diabetes. “We need to work towards decreasing the main factors of diabetes type 2, and that can be done by following a healthy lifestyle which include regular exercise, healthy food and losing weight ,” added Dr al-Hamaq.
As per a survey by the Supreme Council of Health (SCH), Qatar has 16.7% diabetes as of 2012. The country stands 10th among the first 10 countries with highest diabetes prevalence. Diabetes is a common chronic disease all over the world affecting all segments of society including children, women, youth and adults. It is currently one of the world’s biggest killers with over 382mn people suffering from the disease. The total number of diabetics in the world is expected to exceed 592mn by 2030. In the Mena region, one out of ten adults suffers from diabetes.