#Women’sMonth: Diabetes is the #1 reason for ill health, death
DID YOU KNOW: Diabetes is now the #1 reason for ill health and death among women in the country?
The health and well-being of women are in the spotlight as South Africa celebrates Women’s Month in August.
According to Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), diabetes is now the #1 reason for ill health and death among women in the country.
Diabetes is a complex condition to manage at any time of life. These challenges intensify as women’s lives get in the way: careers blossom, family needs increase, days become busier and healthier choices are harder to make.
Being over 45 and being overweight are the two largest contributors to developing Type 2 diabetes. For women, reaching middle age also means going through menopause, with symptoms like hot flushes, sleep disturbances, and certain infections.
Sometimes women with diabetes, especially those who were recently diagnosed with the condition, may confuse the signs of menopause with some of the symptoms of low or high blood glucose like the occasional dizziness, sweating, finding it hard to concentrate or being unusually irritable. Fatigue can also be associated with both menopause and high blood glucose levels.
Under these conditions, healthy lifestyle choices as the first measure towards managing blood glucose levels as well as dealing with changes brought on by menopause become even more important – but at the same time more difficult.
When exercise and a balanced diet are not enough to get that sugar level under control for Type 2 diabetic women, South Africans also have the option of a Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor treatment.
Taken once daily, this oral medication reduces the re-absorption of sugar from the kidneys into the bloodstream, facilitating the excretion of excess glucose through urine. This positively impacts blood glucose, body weight, and blood pressure.
In collaboration with healthcare professionals, a pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim is drawing the public’s and particularly women’s attention to these matters. Acknowledging that life gets in the way of daily management of blood sugar levels, the company is urging women to act early and prioritise their health during Women’s Month – and the rest of the year.
• Source: Meropa Communications
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