World Diabetes Day: Act now, doctors urge patients

Even as India has earned the dubious distinction of having the highest number of diabetics in the world, doctors are increasingly advocating self-management of the disease as way to control it.

A recent study has pointed out that 10% or about 60 lakh people in Maharashtra alone suffer from the silent disease. What’s worse is that 9 million people were found to be pre-diabetic.

“The numbers are so high that the doctors cannot see all the patients on a regular basis. Even today, our appointments are booked three months in advance. That’s why patients should learn to take care of themselves and only consult doctors in emergencies as this is a lifelong disease,” said endocrinologist Dr Uday Phadke.

Phadke said, currently, patients are heavily dependent on doctors for management of the disease.

“The management of diabetes is easily done through a five-point formula that patients need to follow in their daily life. In fact, diabetes management depends heavily on a person rather than medication, which is why we discourage people to come to our clinics for slightest of things and instead report the problem online,” said Phadke.

Diabetologist Shreerang Godbole agreed with the same. “Usually, patients monitored their blood sugar levels thrice a year. This is not enough and since many cannot visit our clinics frequently, we teach them to use devices so that they can home monitor their sugar levels. In fact, we teach patients to adjust the dosage of insulin injections according to the reading. The most important message to be sent out on Diabetes Day is that self-help is the best help. The number of doctors is limited compared to the patients, so it is prudent to learn how to manage the disease,” said Godbole.

The five point formula for management is simple - diet restrictions, daily exercise, regular blood sugar monitoring and insulin dosage adjustments, changing harmful personal habits like smoking and foot care like daily inspection for foot cracks, discolouration, cuts or injuries, and keeping the web spaces clean.

“While I do agree that self-help is utmost priority in treatment of diabetes, a doctor should be consulted if a patient suspects something awry like erratic blood sugar levels, unhealed cuts on foots, problems in sight or blood pressure problems,” said diabetologist Dr Abhay Mutha.

He added that diabetics should attend patient education programmes in order to learn about diabetes, how to manage it and the right time to consult a doctor.