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The Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday that the Kingdom will be observing “World Diabetes Day” on Nov. 14 as a part of its campaign to combat the disease.
Khaled Al-Tayeb, head of the diabetes center in Makkah, said in a statement that the ministry is planning to organize events that will help raise awareness regarding the nature of diabetes.
He also added that the ministry would perform a series of checkups, including measuring blood pressure, weight, height, eye and conducting dental checks.
Al-Tayeb said that health care practitioners will also share their knowledge about how to attain proper nutrition to prevent and combat diabetes, especially amongst the Saudi youth.
The theme for this year’s event is “Diabetes Education and Prevention.”
According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the global event aims to encourage government sectors to implement and strengthen policies for the prevention and control of diabetes and its complications, as well as disseminate tools to support national and local initiatives for the prevention and management of diabetes and its complications. In addition, the event strives to raise awareness of the warning signs of diabetes and promote action to encourage diagnosis and action to reduce the risk factors for Type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes has been a plague haunting Saudis for a long time, especially Type 2 diabetes, which is the prevalent form of the disease in the Kingdom.
Records indicate that over 25 percent of adult Saudis are suffering from diabetes and that half of Saudis over 30 are prone to developing the disease.
Experts claim that the high instances of diabetes in the Kingdom originate from obesity caused by improper eating habits and malnutrition. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), �������� has the second highest rate of diabetes cases in the Middle East region and ranks seventh in the world.