Risk of death due to diabetes high in the UAE

 

• Image Credit: Corbis/ArabianEye.com
• A diabetic checks blood sugar level (self glycemia). A drop of blood obtained with a pen-like lancing device is placed on a test stick and analysed with a glucometer.

Dubai: Deaths related to diabetes will continue to double until 2030 globally, according to the latest World Health Organisation (WHO) figures. The projection is particularly alarming for the UAE which has one of the highest rates of diabetes prevalence in the world.

Experts fear the risk of death from diabetes in the UAE is high and the high prevalence of the disease represents a ticking health time-bomb.

Statistics by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) peg the percentage of diabetic UAE residents — Emiratis and expatriates — at more than 20 per cent with another 18 per cent at high risk. Only the native population of the Pacific island of Nauru has a higher rate.

The 2011 figures from the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) suggest that the UAE has moved from being the 2nd to the 10th highest in the world in terms of diabetes prevalence. The authority stressed on the need for continued efforts to combat diabetes.

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A diabetic patient is susceptible to complications including cardiovascular diseases (CVD), stroke, nerve damage, and kidney disease.

In Abu Dhabi alone, the most common cause of death is CVD, according to the Health Authority Abu Dhabi (HAAD).