Hansard

I congratulate David Stewart on securing the debate, which itself raises awareness of both types of diabetes.

Awareness is important, because early diagnosis is crucial in the treatment of diabetes. Late onset or type 2 diabetes is much more likely to be picked up, because it happens to adults who can communicate to their general practitioners the symptoms that they are experiencing. The GP can work on the information that the patient gives, as well as looking at the person’s age, weight and lifestyle.

Type 1 diabetes is much more difficult to identify. As Aileen McLeod said, often it is a very young child who becomes unwell, who might not be able to communicate how they are feeling. It can be hard to diagnose the disease, and sometimes a crisis is reached before that happens, which is not ideal.

Innovations in the treatment of diabetes, such as insulin pumps for type 1 patients, have helped people to take better control of their condition, although they have not changed the person’s condition or their dependence on insulin.

Whether a person has type 1 or type 2 diabetes, they tend to depend on some kind of drug therapy for the rest of their life. They must also be careful about what they eat and when, and things like going for a drink with friends have to be planned, because of the impact of alcohol on blood sugar levels and diabetes control.

It sometimes feels as though we have not come far in the treatment of diabetes, although new drugs might help people with the condition—we must wait to see how things pan out. We need a lot more research and development in relation to causes, treatment and medication, particularly for type 1 diabetes, the cause of which is difficult to identify.

Diabetes is dangerous, not just because blood sugar levels fluctuate to a degree that can be lethal if left unmanaged but because of its impact on overall health. Hanzala Malik talked about kidney failure and the impact on sight; diabetes can also lead to heart disease, circulation problems and difficulty in healing, which sometimes results in amputation. The outcomes can be extremely serious for diabetics.

New medications can help to alleviate the problems, but we need to do an awful lot more to develop treatment. We need to stress the importance of diet and exercise, to keep people fit as they get older. It can be difficult to say to someone whose joints are beginning to creak a bit that they should take more exercise, but there are activities that are valuable and do not have the impact that other activities have.

We need to inform people about diet. We all have busy lives and we are probably all a wee bit dependent on fast food, microwave meals and the like. We need more information about nutrition and we need to know how to use that information. Young people are no longer taught in school about what is good for them and what makes for a balanced diet.

We need to review how we provide care and support. When the minister sums up, it would be good if he gave us an update on how best practice is being rolled out, how our managed clinical networks are working and how the excellent work of the diabetes audit and research in Tayside study is informing health boards and improving the care and treatment of people with diabetes.

We should also perhaps work with schools, especially when very young children with type 1 diabetes first go to school, and inform teachers how to manage their condition by, for instance, ensuring that they eat before they take part in physical education lessons and the like. A little information and input from teachers could make the lives of parents and children a lot better.

I welcome the debate, as it shines a spotlight on diabetes. It is important that that happens because, as other members have said, diabetes is on the increase and we need to look at prevention and cure.