'Diabetes-free India by 2030' campaign launched

A pan-India campaign to make the country free from diabetes by 2030 was launched today from here in the presence of Gujarat Governor O P Kohli and well known doctors.
"Diabetes-free India by 2030" is an initiative undertaken by an NGO 'DiabetesIndia' and supported by 'Diabetes Care India', founded by Gujarat-based diabetologist, Banshi Saboo.
The campaign aims at ensuring that all the children born after the year 2030 to be free from diabetes, for which, various stakeholders, such as doctors and schools, will be engaged to start the work at all levels, said Saboo.
According to the president of DiabetesIndia, S M Sadikot, India will have around 120 million diabetes patients by 2040 if action is not taken at the earliest.

"As per a survey conducted last year, one person had died every 6 seconds due to diabetes across the globe. In India, biggest cause of blindness is diabetes. It is also a matter of concern that most people do not even know that they are having diabetes" said Sadikot.
Giving the road map to make India free of diabetes by 2013, Saboo stressed that people from different walks of like will be encouraged to change their lifestyle, including food habits.
"We will engage in various programs across the country to make people understand that physical activity and healthy food intake can help fight against this disease. Among many other steps we intend to take, we will request schools to include health science as a subject in their curriculum," he said.