HYDERABAD: Often India is referred to as the diabetes capital of the world. India ranks second after China in the global diabetes epidemic and contributes over 18 per cent of the global diabetes case burden. While this could possibly happen due to negligent behaviour towards the disease or self medicating oneself without being diagnosed by the doctor. Most of us have been suffering from diabetes without any barrier of age and this will soon become a serious issue. To know why this has been happening, we get in touch with Dr Jagdeesh Kumar V, Senior Consultant Physician and Diabetologist at KIMS Hospitals.
Talking about how diabetes has been growing in a country like India, Dr Jagdeesh says, “Usually people think that they need to have some symptoms of diabetes to approach a doctor. The symptoms that we talk about in this condition are polyuria - going for urine multiple times, polydipsia - taking water multiple times and poor healing of the wounds which are the common symptoms that people complain about. Of course this is partially true and it is only possible when your blood sugar levels are more than 250-350. But we are trying to treat you at a very early stage which means when someone fasting blood sugar is more than 126 with 8 hours of fasting or postprandial, checking the blood sugar after 2 hours of eating time if the blood sugar is 200 plus then we consider them as diabetes.”
About the challenges to treat the patients, he says, “People have been landing up in false situations and conclusions. The biggest problem that we are facing in India is OCD - Over the Counter Drugs, Obsessive Compulsive Diagnostics. If you have a problem, you need to go to a doctor and tell them, then the doctor gives advice. But people have been neglecting it. In diabetes there are four D’s the first one is discipline, diet, drugs and doctor. If your four D’s are proper you have wonderful management of diabetics. Discipline includes proper lifestyle and stress which no one has a test to check on. This is a measurable character which is important for increased lifestyle disorders in which diabetes is the highest. Diet means having proper physical activities. When you stop taking carbohydrates you are reducing sugar which is deficient in multi nutrients. Eventually over a period of one or one-and-a-half years they are coming to hospitals in a very sick stage and aging very early.”
Regarding the random diet plans that one follows and how it affects a diabetic patient he says, “When I put a medication it is approved all over the world. But when people who are not experts or are not doctors they give some diet plan it may be considered good or it may not too. People should have the intelligence of what is right and what is not right. If you see other important things, India has a significantly increased number of retired people who have become an important risk factor for increasing diabetes. They keep sending WhatsApp forwards which are not good. Social reasons are very important for unawareness, lack of proper information delivered to the right place.”