Drive vs diabetes
IF more and more people are getting sick of diabetes, blame it partly on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which has claimed the lives of millions of people across the globe.
In a bid to control the further spread of the deadly virus, the government has been imposing quarantine restrictions, forcing the Filipino people, including employees, to just stay at home.
Of course, these quarantine restrictions and remote work assignments in the government and private sector keep many Filipinos at home and safe from the dreaded COVID-19.
However, the pandemic and subsequent lockdown have directly affected diabetes control in the country, according Dr. Gilbert Vilela, vice president of the Philippine Heart Association.
Records show that an estimated four million adults in the country, with a population of more than 100 million, are diagnosed with diabetes.
More than 32 percent of those with Type 2 diabetes mellitus or adult diabetes have cardiovascular complications, while more than 87 percent are either overweight or obese.
The lack of exercise and decreased activity lead to other medical conditions, such as obesity, which may develop into Type 2 diabetes mellitus.
During the last three years, ischemic heart disease, cancer and pneumonia have been listed as the major causes of deaths in the country, with diabetes at fourth place.
Philippine Statistics Authority data showed that in 2020, deaths due to adult diabetes ranked fourth at 37,265 after heart diseases (99,680), cancer (62,289) and cerebrovascular diseases (59,736).
But the increase in ischemic heart diseases was only 2.3 percent, while cancer went down by about 10 percent, and pneumonia by about six percent. Diabetes went up by 7.8 percent, said Vilela.
Since March 16, 2020, when the government placed the entire Luzon area under the so-called enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), COVID-19 has killed 18,472 and infected 1,022,224 in the Philippines.
