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A diabetic patient injects himself with insulin. A person is said to be a diabetic when their body cannot properly store and use glucose broken down from foods such as bread, rice, potatoes and other carbohydrates. FILE PHOTO
More youth are getting diabetes, says centre
More youth have become diabetic, the Kenya Diabetes Management and Information Centre (DMI) has said.
DMI chair Nancy Ngugi said the youth are being diagnosed with Type II diabetes, which is more common in adults and is mainly caused by an inactive lifestyle.
A person is said to be a diabetic when their body cannot properly store and use glucose broken down from foods such as bread, rice, potatoes and other carbohydrates.
They present symptoms of frequent urination, increased thirst and hunger.
“We are seeing a sharp increase of the condition in young people — a worrying trend since implementation of devolution as people’s lifestyles change,” Ms Ngugi said.
According to DMI, more people are consuming refined foods and drinks and fail to exercise due to easy access to transportation, especially boda boda.
‘Twenty-six per cent of bed occupancy in hospitals in the country consists of diabetic patients while 50 per cent of dialysis patients are found to be suffering from diabetes,” she added.
Ms Ngugi spoke at the weekend in Kiharu Constituency, Murang’a County, during a free medical camp organised by the DMI Centre and Safaricom Foundation.
She said DMI has been on a countrywide awareness drive to educate Kenyans on the “dangerous” disease.
Source:http://www.nation.co.ke
