As part of the Diabetes Awareness Campaign in the month of November, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ridge Medical Centre (RMC), Dr David Sunu, has cautioned the general public to be mindful of their lifestyle choices.
Dr Sunu explains that diabetes is one of the conditions that is described as a lifestyle disease because while there is genetic predisposition towards developing diabetes, a person’s lifestyle plays a major role and presents an opportunity to either avoid the condition altogether or delay the age at which it is developed.
World Diabetes Day (WDD) is the world’s largest diabetes awareness campaign reaching a global audience of over 1 billion people in over 160 countries.
It is marked every year on 14 November, the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting, who co-discovered insulin along with Charles Best in 1922.
In a statement to mark the day, Dr Sunu said, “November is observed as Diabetes Awareness Month at Ridge Medical Center because we would like to raise awareness about Diabetes. Based on the available data, the adult type-2 diabetes prevalence in Ghana is reported to be as much as 3 to 6%; that is very significant and needs urgent attention.”
He further explained that “Diabetes is one of the conditions that we describe as a lifestyle disease because while there is genetic predisposition towards developing diabetes, your lifestyle plays a major role and presents an opportunity to either avoid the condition altogether or delay the age at which you develop it.
“My advice for the general public is to avoid a sedentary lifestyle, control your weight, exercise regularly, minimise sugary foods and avoid late eating to help prevent diabetes or control your blood sugar.”
