Meeting of the Parliament 12 November 2014
I am pleased to be taking part in a debate to acknowledge this year’s world diabetes day. I congratulate David Stewart on again securing parliamentary time to bring to our attention this international event, which since its inception in 1991 has been important in raising the profile of diabetes around the globe.
David Stewart has acknowledged Sir Michael Hirst’s invaluable work in diabetes, but David himself has been a tireless campaigner for people with diabetes in Scotland throughout his parliamentary career, both in Westminster and as a member of this Parliament. He is also very active as co-convener of the cross-party group on diabetes, in which we have worked together in recent years alongside Diabetes Scotland to raise awareness of the condition in an on-going effort to prevent its development where possible, and to mitigate its long-term and very serious complications.
With 382 million people worldwide currently living with diabetes, and that number predicted to rise to 592 million by 2035, the condition is reaching pandemic proportions. Beyond the people who have already been diagnosed, it is thought that a further 316 million people are at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. In Scotland, more than 268,000 people have been diagnosed and will need help to manage the condition in order to avoid its complications.
However, what is really concerning is that many people with diabetes still go undetected and their condition is unrecognised until they begin to develop its serious and life-threatening complications. Globally, it is thought that up to 50 per cent of such people remain undiagnosed, which is a very serious challenge for all of us. It is estimated that in Scotland one in five people either has diabetes or is at high risk of developing it, which costs our NHS £1 billion each year, 80 per cent of which goes on dealing with potentially preventable complications.
We all know that types 1 and 2 diabetes are distinct entities. Type 1 generally starts when people are young, and is unavoidable, but type 2 is generally a condition of later life, the onset of which can often be prevented by leading a healthy lifestyle. It is very important to be able to recognise the symptoms of diabetes, whatever its type, because the earlier it is diagnosed and properly managed, the less likely are its complications to appear. Diabetes Scotland’s campaign to raise awareness in children and young people by highlighting the symptoms and warning signs, and encouraging them to eat healthily and exercise regularly is to be commended and supported.
A regime of physical activity and healthy eating is important to all of us, of course. By leading that type of life we can help to avoid the pitfalls of obesity, one of the most serious being the development of type 2 diabetes. In modern western society there are very many people—the numbers are, sadly, increasing—who are significantly overweight, which undoubtedly leads to earlier onset of type 2 diabetes. Some people in their teens now have the condition, and the earlier the onset, the sooner people are likely to develop the complications of kidney, eye and cardiovascular disease. Those not only compromise their health and wellbeing, but might result in their premature death and, in the process, put a great deal of pressure on NHS resources.
Everyone living with diabetes should have equal access to appropriate health services, but that is not yet the case.
The message of the world diabetes day 2014 campaign is a simple one—that the healthy choice can actually be the easy choice. The campaign aims to inform children and young people about how to make the right choices about what they eat—one of the most valuable being to start the day with a healthy breakfast. By educating them now in a fun and engaging way on the importance of a healthy diet and regular physical activity, we will help to protect the health and wellbeing of young people and future generations, and we will achieve better health outcomes for people who currently suffer from diabetes and those who are at risk of developing it.
I commend the campaigning work of Diabetes Scotland, which we will celebrate in the Parliament next Tuesday at this year’s parliamentary reception for world diabetes day, and I thank David Stewart once again for leading the debate.
17:25