MANILA, Philippines — A sedentary lifestyle and an unhealthy diet have contributed to the rise in diabetes patients in the country, with as many as 1.4 million Filipino adults (aged 20 and above) acquiring the disease in the last five years.

Doctors are also alarmed that those with acquired diabetes are getting younger.

Data presented by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) in its Diabetes Atlas for 2009 placed the number of Filipino adults with Type 2 or acquired diabetes at 3.4 million out of a 51-million adult population, with 4.9 million more as border line cases.

“The numbers are increasing at an alarming rate,” said Dr. Tommy Ty Willing, president and chair of Diabetes Philippines. He said the estimate is that in the next 20 years, more than half of the adult population worldwide would be diabetic.

Even high school students

“Type 2 diabetes usually develops among the middle-aged group between 40 to 50 years old. Now even high school students have Type 2 diabetes, which was very rare before,” he said.

He blamed little physical activity among the young, coupled with a high-calorie or fast-food diet. Even among the poor, there is malnutrition-related diabetes because of the food they take that destroys the pancreas, Willing said.

Diabetes is a chronic disease where the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or where the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces.

Kidney disease is the leading complication of diabetes, followed by heart disease, stroke, or nerve diseases that can lead to the amputation of lower limbs and eye disease.

The warning signs include frequent urination, excessive thirst, increased hunger, weight loss, tiredness, lack of interest and concentration, vomiting and stomach pain (often mistaken for flu), tingling sensation or numbness in the hands or feet. Other signs include blurred vision, frequent infections and slow-healing wounds.

Type 1 diabetes is most commonly diagnosed in children and young adults who usually get it from a viral infection like the common cold. With Type 2 diabetes, the more common type of diabetes, one cannot use the insulin that they produce. The patient needs to take regular medicines and insulin shots, has to watch his diet and exercise regularly.

World Diabetes Day

With about 285 million adult diabetics worldwide, the United Nations has mandated observance of World Diabetes Day on Nov. 14, with this year’s theme, “Understand Diabetes and Take Control.”

Willing said Type 2 diabetes can be prevented by maintaining a healthy weight and being physically active. Regular walking for at least 30 minutes per day has been shown to reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes by 35 to 40 percent.

According to IDF data, the latest prevalence rate for diabetes in the country is 6.7 per cent of the population, or 3.4 million out of an adult population of 51 million.

The prevalence rate for impaired glucose tolerance is higher at 9.6 percent, or 4.8 million persons at risk of developing diabetes.