50% of diabetes victims unaware of status — VC

The Acting Vice Chancellor of Osun State University, Prof. Jelili Oguntola, has said it is unfortunate that half of the number of people effected by diabetes in  Nigeria are not aware of their status. The VC said this in Osogbo on Wednesday at the 2014/2015 Faculty of Clinical Sciences Lecture. Oguntola described the scenario as dangerous as the consequences of uncontrolled diabetes on the victims were very bad. He said, “This lecture is  a very useful one to everybody. Almost half of the victims suffering from diabetes don’t know that they have it. “I believe the best thing is for everybody to go for screening to know if they have it or not. For those who have it, it can be managed and those who do not, would be told what to do to prevent it. “Going for screening will help everybody, families and the nation because for those who have it would know what to do to control it before it leads further to dangerous health conditions. The Dean of Faculty of Sciences, UNIOSUN, Prof. Olayinka Akinwusi, said abstinence from sugary drinks and alcohol could prevent diabetes. She said, “​In Nigeria, the prevalence was 2.2 per cent in the 1990s through a Federal Ministry of Health sponsored Survey by Akinkugbe, et al. The prevalence is now estimated to be 0-2 per cent in adult rural dwellers and 6-10 per cent in urban adults. In essence about four million Nigerians have diabetes and about half of them are unaware. “​Lifestyle modifications such as healthy diet, regular physical activities or exercises, smoking cessation, alcohol reduction, abstaining from soft drinks/sugary drinks are all very important primary and secondary prevention strategies.” An Assistant Professor of Endocrinology from the University of Virginia, United States, Dr. Ayotunde Dokun, said the biggest factor for type 2 diabetes was obesity. He advised those who had become inactive as a result of some level of prosperity to change their lifestyle, saying they should engage in excerices and refrain from eating junks. Dokun stated that obesity was becoming common among kids in developing countries because kids from rich homes no longer engaged in physical activities but spent hours behind computers and playing computer games. One of the nurses at the lecture, Oluwatoyin Ajiroba, also advised Nigerians to  reduce consumption of heavy carbohydrate meals and eat fruits and vegetables more.