Hansard

I thank David Stewart for securing this debate on diabetes.

It is important to recognise the importance of diabetes in Scotland and its impact on people’s lives, and to promote the ways in which people with that medical condition can learn to continue their daily lives.

Figures from Diabetes UK show that nearly a quarter of a million people in Scotland have diabetes and the number who have been diagnosed with it has increased at an alarming rate over the past few years: according to Diabetes UK, the number of Scots who were diagnosed with diabetes increased by some 26 per cent between 2006 and 2011.

It has become essential that we recognise Scots with early undiagnosed diabetes, that we make those citizens aware of their medical condition, and that we provide the appropriate care to ensure that their daily lives are not complicated as a result of their condition.

In many ethnic minority communities, diabetes is not often acknowledged as a serious risk that could hinder one’s daily life and affect one’s surrounding family. Many south Asian communities in Scotland have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and people in them are likely to be diagnosed at an earlier age than people in the indigenous community.

There are a number of voluntary organisations in my Glasgow constituency, such as the Glasgow south voluntary group that is associated with Diabetes UK and the cheeni kum—which means less sugar—at home project, which is administered by the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland. Those organisations tend to people who have been newly diagnosed with diabetes and their families. Information and various supports are provided that enable people to continue their daily life in a manner that caters for their new medical condition.

Although there is some education on that health matter in my constituency, Scotland wide the educational courses on diabetes are scattered, at best. Providing education and support for a healthy lifestyle to people who have been diagnosed with diabetes is an essential component in ensuring that Scots who have diabetes have high standards of life and betterment.

As a diabetic, I am aware of the problems that diabetics suffer and the lack of treatment through Scottish Government and NHS policies—for example, the refusal to fit gastric bands to people who suffer from diabetes. My understanding is that doing that would reduce numbers in the diabetic community by nearly 80 per cent at a stroke. Excuse the pun.

It is important that we realise that we have a serious problem with diabetes and a growing dependency on the NHS because of it, because we know that diabetes results in kidney failure and many other ailments, including ailments that affect eyesight. I have had an operation for my eyesight because I am diabetic. Those are challenges that face us today.

We need to address the issues that we have in treating diabetes and in treating it seriously as an issue. We must recognise its implications for our communities and consider how we can take the message to them about diabetes. Minority communities in particular suffer greatly from diabetes, so it is important that we are more rigorous in taking that serious message to them. I know that attempts have been made to communicate the message about diabetes, particularly in the larger cities, but rural areas clearly suffer from lack of information about diabetes. I look forward to the minister’s comments on how he intends to deal with that issue.