14 November - World Diabetes Day

12 November 2021

WHO

World Diabetes Day was created in 1991 by IDF and the World Health Organization in response to growing concerns about the escalating health threat posed by diabetes.

According to the latest International Diabetes data, 422 million people worldwide suffer from diabetes, and an increase in the number of patients is prognosticated to double by 2030. World Diabetes Day is marked every year on 14 November, the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting, who co-discovered insulin along with Charles Best in 1922.

At least 50% of people who already have diabetes are not even aware of it. Informative measures are therefore needed to draw people’s attention to this disease, with an emphasis on early diagnosis and prevention.

Every year, the World Diabetes Day campaign focuses on a dedicated theme that runs for one or more years. The theme for World Diabetes Day 2021-23 is "Access to Diabetes Care – If Not Now, When?"

The hormone insulin moves sugar from the blood into your cells to be stored or used for energy. With diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't effectively use the insulin it does make. There are 2 main types: type 1 diabetes (lack of insulin) and type 2 diabetes (ineffective use of insulin)

The number of people with diabetes rose from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. Prevalence has been rising more rapidly in low- and middle-income countries than in high-income countries.
Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke and lower limb amputation.
A healthy diet, regular physical activity, maintaining a normal body weight and avoiding tobacco use are ways to prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes can be treated and its consequences avoided or delayed with diet, physical activity, medication and regular screening and treatment for complications.

WHO aims to stimulate and support the adoption of effective measures for the surveillance, prevention and control of diabetes and its complications, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. To this end, WHO :

provides scientific guidelines for the prevention of major noncommunicable diseases including diabetes;
develops norms and standards for diabetes diagnosis and care;
builds awareness on the global epidemic of diabetes, marking World Diabetes Day (14 November);
conducts surveillance of diabetes and its risk factors.