LAHORE: Leading Diabetes Institutions and Ferozsons Laboratories Sunday launched ‘stop diabetes campaign’ across Pakistan in a bid to check spread of the disease by raising awareness among the masses about healthy lifestyle. The Pakistan Endocrine Society (PES), Diabetic Association of Pakistan (DAP) and Baqai Institute of Diabetology & Endocrinology (BIDE) collaborated with Ferozsons Laboratories Limited, to launch a nationwide initiative to light up four iconic monuments – Delhi Gate, Faisal Mosque, Frere Hall and Peshawar Museum into beacons of blue light on the 14th of November marked as “World Diabetic Day”
When diabetes is undetected or inadequately treated, people with diabetes are at risk of serious and life-threatening complications, such as heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and lower-limb amputation, resulting in reduced quality of life and higher healthcare costs, health professionals, said.
President Pakistan Endocrine Society, Dr. Ibrar Ahmed said: “Diabetes leads to life threatening complications; the only way to prevent Diabetes is to maintain a healthy diet and ensure lifestyle modifications.”
Prof. Abdul Basit, Secretary General DAP & Director BIDE said: “Pakistan is now ranked third in the world in terms of diabetes prevalence. The public has to know how to avoid getting diabetes, those with diabetes need to know what they should do to delay or avoid the distressing health complications and other stakeholders must be sensitized to contribute in the fight against diabetes.”
CEO of Ferozsons Laboratories Limited, Osman Khalid Waheed said: “The main purpose of the Stop Diabetes campaign is to educate the general public about the health impact of diabetes and how to prevent it by adopting a healthy lifestyle. This November our teams will be working with the Pakistan Endocrine Society, leading diabetologists and the medical community in nationwide activities to raise mass awareness. This is the only way to curb the rise of this disease.”
Waheed thanked WCLA Director General Kamran Lashari, CDA Chairman Amer Ali, Administrator KMC Barrister Murtaza Wahab, In-charge Peshawar Museum Muhammad Asif Raza, President PES Dr. Ibrar Ahmed, Secretary General DAP and Director BIDE Prof. Abdul Basit for their support.
Moreover, Post Graduate Medical Institute (PGMI) Principal Prof. Dr. Sardar Muhammad Al-freed Zafar while speaking at a function said the rising number of diabetic patients in Pakistan is a wake-up call for the new generation and they must adopt healthy lifestyle and stay away from junk food.
He said that the people’s lives have come to a standstill due to lack of physical exertion. Due to weight gain and increasing consumption of fast food, a large number of people suffer from diabetes, which is also called the mother of dozens of diseases, he said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021