Luanda – At least 1.6 million Angolans suffers from diabetes, said last Saturday in Luanda, the minister of Health, Sílvia Lutucuta.
According to the minister, who spoke at the opening of the 1st Symposium on diabetes, in addition to high number of people with diabetes, the disease is associated with serious complications, such as blindness, lower limb amputation, acute myocardial infarction, stroke disease and kidneys failure, therefore requiring the implementation of public policies for prevention and control measures to reduce their effects.
Sílvia Lutucuta stated that the Executive has implemented preventive measures and assistance for diabetes mellitus, including it in the National Development Plan for the period 2018-2022, setting as a goal that 50% of health facilities at the primary care have minimal conditions for screening the diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
She added that the implementation of these measures constitute cost-effective strategies for reducing the incidence of the prevalence of mortality and complications resulting from diabetes and consequently in the decrease in demand for health services.
On her turn, the diabetes programme coordinator of the National Health Directorate for Public Health, Natália da Conceição, the disease in the country is a public health issue, because the weight can be felt in terms of bed occupancy in hospitals.
The magnitude of diabetics in Angola is still little known, because there are no studies on population-level that can indicate the numbers in the country.
The symposium was promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Since 1991, the 14th of November has been celebrated by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF: International Diabetes Federation) and the World Health Organization as a Diabetics Day.
The aim of this day is to draw the attention of citizens and governments to the problem of this desease.
This date was chosen because it is the birthday of Frederick Banting, the Canadian doctor who, with his colleague Charles Best, conducted the experiments that led to the discovery of insulin in 1921.
In 2007, this date gained special importance. In the previous year the United Nations recognized through resolution 61/225 that the rampant prevalence of diabetes worldwide posed a severe threat to families, member states and the world.
For this reason, the 14th of November came to be considered a United Nations Day to be observed every year since 2007.
