"IF NOT NOW THEN WHEN! - the slogan of this year's World Diabetes Day celebrations has also become the leitmotif of the latest video clip of the nationwide educational campaign 'Living Longer with Diabetes'. Campaign organisers are highlighting physical activity as a way for diabetics to live longer and for those at risk of this insidious disease to avoid it.
Recognised by the UN as the only non-communicable epidemic of the 21st century, diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases and the most dangerous conditions of civilisation. It leads to many complications and, undiagnosed or inadequately treated, is one of the main causes of dependency and even premature death. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes, accounting for as much as 80 per cent of all cases. In Poland, it affects 3 million people, as many as 30 per cent of whom do not know they have the disease. A further 5 million people are in a pre-diabetic state. - If they do nothing with their lives, the disease will soon develop in them. Overweight, obesity, poor eating habits and lack of physical activity are the main causes of type 2 diabetes - says Maja Makowska, a diabetic. - Fortunately, we can influence every one of them. All you have to do is get moving! Start making lifestyle changes.
Maja Makowska, known as Sugar Woman, knows what she is talking about, because she has been struggling with diabetes for 22 years. She is the best proof that it is possible to live a "full life" with diabetes: to pursue one's passions, to work professionally, to undertake the same activities as a healthy person. However, a few rules need to be known and applied. Maja herself has been doing this for years, and on the occasion of World Diabetes Day, as part of a nationwide educational campaign 'Living Longer with Diabetes', shares them in the video 'If not now then when? "If not now then when? Get moving and live longer with diabetes!" so that more people (not just those with a diagnosis of 'diabetes') can live long and better lives.
– When we realise that every 10 seconds someone in the world develops diabetes and every 8 seconds someone dies due to its complications, it becomes clear that one cannot delay. Symptoms such as constant fatigue and lethargy, increased thirst or incomprehensible weight fluctuations should prompt us to contact our doctor immediately. And if he confirms diabetes, the necessary steps to bring the disease under control must be taken as soon as possible. It is not possible to postpone treatment, after all, it is our life that is at stake here," says Dr. Beata Stepanow, President of the Association of Diabetes Education, which is a partner of the campaign "Longer life with diabetes".
Diabetes is a chronic disease whose complications are particularly dangerous and can cause sudden, premature death from, for example, stroke or heart attack. Unfortunately, more and more younger people are developing diabetes. The pandemic has further aggravated the situation: we have stopped moving, spent more and more time in front of computer screens and less and less time outdoors. But any time is a good time for change. You just have to start now. If only with the simplest yet most effective forms of physical activity, such as Nordic walking.
– Walking with poles in the open air is ideal for everyone. It can be practised by young and old, the healthy and the diabetic, both the experienced and the beginners, the patients themselves as well as their families and relatives. Nordic walking improves physical and mental fitness, speeds up the metabolism, helps control blood glucose levels and reduces stress. - encourages Dr. Joanna Piotrowska, a Nordic walking instructor from the European Association We are Active, leader of one of the teams taking part in the marches for a longer life with diabetes.
Maja Makowska also talks about the benefits of walking with poles and the fact that regular physical activity and a change in eating habits is the key to a normal life even with an illness, in an educational video. - Move right away. What you have to do tomorrow, do today, and if you are immobile, change it immediately -. encourages Sugar Woman. - Movement is health, movement is life. Whenever you remember these words, apply them and you will live longer, better and healthier. Because if not now, when?
The video, entitled "If not now then when? Get moving and live longer with diabetes!" featuring Maja Makowska will be on display during events organised on the occasion of World Diabetes Day and on the campaign website www.dluzszezyciezcukrzyca.pl and campaign profile on FB.
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National Education Campaign "Living Longer with Diabetes" aims to raise public awareness of diabetes, including type 2 diabetes, which affects 80% diabetics and the risks associated with the disease, with particular emphasis on cardiovascular complications. The campaign includes activities aimed at raising awareness of the complications of diabetes, improving the quality and length of life of diabetics, as well as prevention campaigns among healthy people. The campaign was launched on the occasion of World Diabetes Day 2016. The campaign is initiated by Boehringer Ingelheim and its partners are: Polish Diabetes Association, portal mojacukrzyca.org, Association for Diabetes Education, portal cukrzyca.pl and blog Dietolog.pl. Honorary patrons of the campaign are the Polish Diabetes Association and the Polish Cardiac Association.
World Diabetes Day (World Diabetes Day) - an international holiday celebrated on 14 November each year, the anniversary of the birth of the discoverer of insulin, Frederick Banting. The idea behind World Diabetes Day is to raise awareness about diabetes, its risk factors, prevention and treatment. The events organised on this day are intended to spread knowledge about diabetes, raise awareness of the importance of the problem and promote diabetes education.
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Diabetes is a group of metabolic diseases characterised by increased blood glucose levels due to a defect in insulin secretion and/or action. The disease is associated with damage, dysfunction and even failure of various organs, particularly the eyes, kidneys, nerves, heart and blood vessels. Typical symptoms of type 2 diabetes include excessive thirst, frequent urination, susceptibility to intimate infections and fungal infections, and fatigue and lethargy.
We distinguish between type 1 diabetes, which is most common in children and young adults, type 2 diabetes, which accounts for approximately 80% of all cases of the disease, gestational diabetes, and other types of unknown aetiology. Factors contributing to the development of type 2 diabetes include: genetics, environmental factors, physical inactivity, high energy diet, obesity. If untreated, it can lead to serious cardiovascular complications such as heart attack or stroke.
It is recommended that every person over the age of 45 should have their glucose levels tested every three years, and those at risk, regardless of age, once a year. Normal venous blood glucose levels in a healthy person are: 70- 99 mg/dl and < 140 mg/dl in the 120th minute of an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).
DIABETES IN FIGURES:
- 463 million people (aged 20-79) - that's how many are estimated to have diabetes worldwide in 2019
- 3 million - Approximately as many people, i.e. one in 11 adults, in Poland are faced with diabetes
- 5.2 million Poles have pre-diabetes
- What 8 seconds one person dies worldwide from complications of diabetes, more than half of them from cardiovascular disease
- 12 years - even that much shorter life expectancy for diabetics with cardiovascular complications
- 4.2 million People worldwide, according to the International Diabetes Federation, will die of diabetes in 2019
- 578 million people - the number of people with diabetes is expected to rise to this number by 2030 and reach up to 700 million in 2045