In News: On the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin, the World Health Organization (WHO) unveiled a Global Diabetes Compact to help combat the disease.
The International Diabetes Compact (IDC)
- The programme was unveiled at the Global Diabetes Summit, which was co-hosted by the Canadian government.
- The goal of the Global Diabetes Compact is to reduce diabetes risk and ensure that all people diagnosed with diabetes have equal, inclusive, accessible, and high-quality treatment and care.
- It would also aid in the prevention of type 2 diabetes caused by obesity, a poor diet, and a lack of physical activity.
- It will provide benchmarks for combating the diseases in the form of “national coverage goals” to ensure that diabetes treatment reaches a broader audience.
- One of the program’s main goals is to bring together key stakeholders from the public and private sectors, as well as people living with diabetes, behind a shared vision in order to build new energy and co-create solutions.
Diabetes
- Diabetes is a Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) that occurs when the pancreas produces insufficient insulin (a hormone that controls blood sugar, or glucose) or when the body’s insulin is ineffectively used.
- It is divided into two categories:
- Type 1 Diabetes : When the pancreas fails to produce enough insulin, type 1 diabetes develops.
- Type 2 Diabetes : Type 2 diabetes is by far the most common form of diabetes. The body does not use insulin adequately in this state. Insulin resistance is the term for this. Obesity and a lack of physical activity are the leading causes of type 2 diabetes.
Global Burden of Diabetes
- Diabetes has a global burden of approximately 6% of the world’s population, or more than 420 million people, who have type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
- It is the only significant noncommunicable disease where the risk of dying young is increasing rather than decreasing.
- It’s become one of the most common comorbid conditions associated with serious Covid-19 infections.
- In 2019, the International Diabetes Foundation’s Diabetes Atlas ranked India among the top ten countries for diabetics.
Insulin
- Insulin is a peptide hormone generated by the pancreas that aids in blood glucose regulation by facilitating cellular glucose absorption, controlling carbohydrate, lipid, and protein metabolism, and promoting cell division and growth through its mitogenic effects.
- Dr. Frederick Banting, an orthopaedic surgeon, and Charles Best, a medical student at the University of Toronto, discovered it in 1921.
Source: DownToEarth
