"The problem of diabetes and high blood pressure has becoming chronic. So we suggest tests for all people who have crossed 30," said Dr Jyoti Bhattarai, an endocrinologist, adding that since the problem has grown alarmingly people should start undergoing tests 10 years earlier than what doctors in the West recommend.According to Dr Bhattarai, even people under 30 have been found with type-2 diabetes. "I have a lot of patients who are under 30," she said, adding that she has found type-2 even in a 17-year-old girl.
Diabetes is a chronic, metabolic disease characterized by elevated levels of blood glucose, which leads over time to serious damage to the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys and nerves. Type-2 diabetes is the most common, usually in adults, and it occurs when the body becomes resistant to insulin or doesn't make enough insulin.
The World Health Organization said that the number of diabetic patients has raisen over four fold in Nepal in the last few years. WHO estimates that the chronic disease is prevalent in over 436,000 people here and by 2030 the number of diabetic patients will reach 13,200,000. Over 9 percent of the population over 30 is said to be suffering from the malady.
Doctors said that a sedentary life style and unhealthy food habits have been fueling the problem.
The most common diabetic symptoms include frequent urination, intense thirst and hunger, weight gain, unusual weight loss, fatigue and cuts and bruises that do not heal.
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