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1 in 2 people with diabetes don’t know they have it: Diabetes is silent and a big challenge for the 21st century. It is a chronic, incurable, costly, and increasing, but largely preventable non-communicable disease (NCD) which is responsible for millions of deaths annually, debilitating complications, and incalculable human misery.
In order to unite and inspire global diabetes community to produce a powerful voice for diabetes education, World Diabetes Day is observed every year on November 14. Experts tell that everyone is concerned and everyone has a role to play in helping to turn the tide of diabetes to protect our future.
There are many risk factors for type 2 diabetes. They include: Obesity and overweight, lack of exercise, previously identified glucose intolerance, unhealthy diet, increased age, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, a family history of diabetes, history of diabetes during pregnancy, ethnicity etc.
Once identified, people at high risk of diabetes should have their plasma glucose levels measured by a health professional to detect Impaired Fasting Glucose or Impaired Glucose Tolerance, both of which indicate an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
Prevention efforts should target those at risk in order to delay or avoid the onset of type 2 diabetes. There is substantial evidence that achieving a healthy body weight and moderate physical activity can help prevent the development of type 2 diabetes. In primary prevention there is an important role for the diabetes educator to help people understand the risks and set realistic goals to improve health.
International Diabetes Federation (IDF) recommends a goal of at least 30 minutes of daily exercise, such as brisk walking, swimming, cycling or dancing. Regular walking for at least 30 minutes per day, for example, has been shown to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes by 35-40.
At present, type 1 diabetes cannot be prevented. The environmental triggers that are thought to generate the process that results in the destruction of the body’s insulin-producing cells are still under investigation. Type 2 diabetes, however, can be prevented in many cases by maintaining a healthy weight and being physically active.
Unless action is taken to implement effective prevention and control programmes, the total number of people with diabetes will reach 380 million by 2025.
The explosion in diabetes will overwhelm healthcare systems everywhere and subvert the gains of economic development. Investment in diabetes education and diabetes prevention programmes will save money in the long term and deliver significant returns in quality of life for people with diabetes and people at high risk of diabetes.

Source - The Daily Star