honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, March 17, 2005

ISLAND VOICES
Diabetes report should be a wake-up call

By Majken Mechling

The Hawai'i Diabetes Report 2004, which was released last week, was not good.

Get involved:

This year's Walk for Diabetes will be held Saturday. For more information, call the American Diabetes Association at 947-5979 or go to the Web site: www.diabetes.org/walk.

The report, prepared annually by the state Department of Health's Diabetes Prevention and Control Program, estimates that approximately 100,000 people in Hawai'i have diabetes. Of those, about a quarter remain undiagnosed — that means 25,000 people are unaware that they have diabetes.

The Centers for Disease Control confirms it is the undiagnosed who are most at risk of developing or even dying from the myriad complications that can arise from diabetes.

"Complications" — sounds innocent, doesn't it? Not when you consider that it means heart disease, kidney failure, blindness, amputations, stroke and death.

In fact, diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among those ages 20 to 74. It is the leading cause of kidney disease: Almost 60 percent of patients receiving kidney dialysis in Hawai'i have a primary diagnosis of diabetes. Sixty-five percent of deaths among people who have diabetes are due to heart disease and stroke.

More than 900 people die here every year from diabetes-related complications. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the state.

That's why the American Diabetes Association promotes the risk test. A lifetime of complications can be prevented if you recognize diabetes early. In fact, the complications impact more on health than the actual diagnosis. And many diabetes complications are preventable if you get diagnosed early on and maintain a healthy lifestyle, which really is all about good nutrition and exercise. You can take the risk test and get your results in less than a minute at www.diabetes.org.

According to the report, Native Hawaiians, Filipinos and Japanese have a much higher prevalence of diabetes, as well as a higher rate of complications and mortality, than the general population.

Of these three, Native Hawaiians have the highest diabetes mortality rate when compared to other ethnic groups.

But while risk for diabetes can be determined by ethnicity (as well as genetics, age and physiology), it is also greatly determined by behavior. The report pinpointed obesity as a culprit. Obesity rates are significantly higher among adults with diabetes as compared to those without. Nearly 80 percent of diabetes cases are diagnosed in overweight and obese individuals. The link between lifestyle behavior and development of diabetes is clear. And obesity is clearly an issue in Hawai'i.

And these complications cost us. Do you wonder why health insurance premiums are so high? We spend $132 billion per year on treating diabetes in this country; $92 billion of that is in direct medical costs.

Clearly, diabetes is everybody's problem. Employers need to know that if we prevent and manage diabetes, we limit the complications that result in that exorbitant cost. If you own a business with employees, you can do something as simple as establishing a workplace wellness program. Get your team active. Screen them for diabetes. These things cost you nothing, and you're going to save yourself a lifetime of premiums.

Our bottom-line message is: Determine your risk. Get active. And watch your diet.

Majken Mechling is the executive director of the American Diabetes Association Hawaii Market. She wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.