‘Diabetes, hypertension deal twin blows to citizens’
 Mumbai:
India is not only the diabetes capital of the world, a new survey also
shows that Mumbaikars have something to worry about the galloping twin
epidemics of diabetes and hypertension.
The study—Screening India’s Twin Epidemic (SITE)—conducted for the
first time on the two diseases at general physicians’ clinics across the
state revealed that almost a third of the surveyed patients had both the
ailments. “About 25% of those who walked into the clinics had
undiagnosed hypertension, while another 5% had undiagnosed diabetes.
Worse, almost 30% of those surveyed suffered from both diabetes and
hypertension,’’ saidendocrinologist Shashank Joshi, principal
investigator for the study on the epidemic of the twin diseases, which
is being conducted by pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Aventis. SITE, which
covered 1,842 people in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur, will study 20,000
patients in the next one year. “For two days, we screened the first 10
patients walking into the clinics of 100 GPs,’’ said a company official.
India is infamous as the diabetes capital of the world, with 50.8
million people suffering from the disorder. “But the real problem before
India is the masked population that is unaware about the disease. This
ignorance leads to the onset of co-morbidities, such as heart and kidney
ailments,’’ Joshi said.
The SITE study’s Maharashtra section also showed that 73% of
diabetic patients did not have their counts in control, while the figure
stood at around 64% with those suffering from hypertension. “As a result
of the uncontrolled disease, 32% of these patients have kidney problems,
18% altered lipid levels and 72% are overweight,’’ stated the study.
However, Dr S Sadikot of Jaslok Hospital does not find the findings
of the survey surprising at all. “Nine years ago, we realised that India
had relatively high incidence of both diabetes and hypertension. This is
all due to lifestyle changes. We no longer follow the old diet, and to
top it all, we have become too sedentary for our own good. People use
the lift when it comes to climbing up even two flights of stairs,’’ he
said.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
WHAT IS DIABETES?
Diabetes is the inability of the human body to produce insulin. It
is believed that 7% of the general population suffers from diabetes, but
a Chennai study pegs it at 19%.
WHAT IS HYPERTENSION?
In this condition, blood pressure remains abnormally high (a reading
of 140/90 mm Hg or greater). Around 25% of Indians suffer from this
ailment.
SALIENT POINTS OF THE STUDY OF 1,842 PATIENTS
l 39.8 % of the patients visiting clinics are
diabetic and 54.6% hypertensive l 29% has both diabetes and
hyptension l 5% has undiagnosed diabetes and 25%
hypertension l 32% hypertensive patients has kidney
problems l 20% has altered lipids, indicating heart
problems l 72% are overweight or obese and 82.8% has
central obesity
KNOW WHAT COUNTS Waist Circumference: Less than 80 cm (31 inches)
for women Less than 90 cm (36 inches) for men Body Mass Index:
Less than 23 kg/m2 for women and men Blood Pressure: Less than
130/85 mm Hg Less than 120/80mm Hg for diabetes & heart failure Total
Cholesterol: Less than 160 mg/dl
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