November 14th signals World Diabetes Day to mark the birthday of Frederick Banting who, along with Charles Best, discovered insulin in 1922, a life-saving and changing treatment for people diagnosed with diabetes.
Adela Osman, Momentum’s Chief Medical Officer states that “this very common chronic condition occurs when the body fails to process glucose correctly. Over the long-term, high glucose levels are associated with damage to the body and failure of various organs and tissues. Type 1 diabetes is a progressive autoimmune disease that is usually diagnosed during childhood and in young adulthood but type 2 diabetes normally occurs as a result of unhealthy lifestyles and usually starts in adulthood”.
She adds that “Gestational diabetes (GDM) is a form of diabetes consisting of high blood glucose levels during pregnancy. One in 25 pregnancies is affected by this worldwide and it is associated with complications to both mother and baby. GDM usually disappears after pregnancy but women with GDM and their children are at an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes later on in life”.
Osman continues by saying that, “people with diabetes have an increased risk of developing a number of serious health problems affecting various organs in the body along with a higher risk of developing infections, cardiovascular disease, blindness, pancreatic diseases, kidney failure, and lower limb amputation”. She does point out that “because heart diseases and strokes are one of the main causes of death and disability among people with type 2 diabetes, these two diseases remain one of the top three claims events under our critical illness benefit”.
According to the International Diabetes Federation there are currently 382 million people living with diabetes worldwide compared to the 30 million people diagnosed with the disease in 1985. By 2035, it is expected to increase to 592 million or more simply explained: one in 10 people will have the disease. Even more shocking is the fact that 316 million people are currently at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes, with the number expected to increase to almost 500 million within a generation.
The sad truth is that type 2 diabetes is mostly caused by unhealthy lifestyles and can thus be prevented or managed successfully to avoid complications. Unfortunately, ignorance prevails in most cases therefore this pandemic remains undiagnosed in many people.
Prevention should top the list
There are a number of factors that contribute to people being diagnosed with diabetes of which the majority can be managed to minimise the occurrence of the disease. Some of these include the rapid rate of urbanisation causing people, across the globe, to break with traditional lifestyles and diets and move to less healthy, more inactive lifestyles and unbalanced diets. This has led to, particularly in developing countries, a rapid increase in obesity which could result in diabetes. In fact, sedentary lifestyles increase the risk of diabetes by between 20 and 40 per cent.
Adela further adds that “a great number of researchers have confirmed that diabetes is closely related to body mass index (BMI) in excess of 30kg/m2 and a waste circumference in excess of 102 centimeters for men and 88 centimeters for women. In South Africa, recent studies have shown that six out of 10 women had waist circumferences greater than 88 centimetres which put them at risk of developing diabetes and other cardiovascular diseases. Actually, women that are diagnosed with diabetes have a 40 to 50 per cent greater risk of heart disease compared to men with diabetes”.
Studies also highlight the fact that South Africans are developing co-morbid diseases from a younger age with high blood pressure and cholesterol starting to peak from as early as 25 years.
Osman emphasises that “a balanced diet is key because poor nutrition is a modifiable risk for diabetes. High carbohydrate diets are notorious for contributing to obesity which then leads to increased insulin resistance, resulting in type 2 diabetes. It is tragic to realise that almost 90 per cent of all diagnosed type 2 diabetes, could be prevented by simply following a healthy lifestyle”.
Our approach to healthy living
Adela points out that “during 2002 we launched Momentum Interactive along-side Myriad, our long-term insurance product, as an innovative approach to underwriting that rewards clients if they follow a healthy lifestyle based on factors such as BMI, cholesterol and blood pressure. The rewards include guaranteed premium discounts for life. In order to secure these lifelong discounts, we encourage our policyholders to complete a three yearly online reassessment questionnaire whereby they provide us with additional information relating to their health and lifestyle.
This information is utilised to calculate a premium discount, based on their unique circumstances. From a claims perspective, as more health-conscious clients join Momentum Myriad, the risk pool becomes healthier and our claims experience becomes more favourable. For our clients this means more affordable and sustainable premiums.
Small choices can have a big impact
Adela concludes by saying “healthy choices becoming easy choices could go a long way in preventing type 2 diabetes. The mere fact that type 2 diabetes can be prevented or managed successfully demonstrates that it is in our power to control certain conditions if we make informed decisions. The choice is yours”.
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