More than 150 million people in the world suffer from diabetes mellitus; by 2025, experts predicts this number to double to 300 million, with the greatest increase expected to come from developing countries such as the Philippines. About 4 million Filipinos are estimated to have diabetes mellitus, a figure that is almost certainly an underestimate because many cases remain undetected. Untreated or uncontrolled, diabetes can lead to a heart attack, stroke, blindness, amputations, kidney problems, and even death.

Leading a sedentary lifestyle, being overweight or obese, eating an unhealthy diet, a family history of the disease – if any of these apply to you, you may be at risk. If your pee trips to the toilet are becoming more frequent, if you are constantly hungry or thirsty or feel like your hands and feet are being pricked by needles, you may already have the first confirm the diagnosis through a fasting blood sugar (FBS) determination and oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).

So far, we’ve been talking about only one of several types of diabetes mellitus. There is also type 1 diabetes mellitus which usually develops in childhood and often requires lifetime insulin therapy, and gestational diabetes which develops during pregnancy and disappears after delivery. But type 2 diabetes mellitus is by far the most common.

Although there is no cure yet for diabetes, the disease is highly preventable. Simple but positive lifestyle changes, such as eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly, are scientifically proven to prevent diabetes. In fact, for individuals with mildly elevated blood sugar levels- what doctors call pre-diabetics such simple lifestyle changes can prevent pre-diabetes from progressing to full-blown diabetes.

The range of treatment options for diabetes is now much broader than what was available two or three decades ago, thanks to robust research. There are a variety of oral anti-diabetes medications that target different organ systems, all of which work lower blood sugar levels. These include vildagliptin, which belongs to a new class of blood sugar-lowering medicines called DPP-4 inhibitors. Insulin therapy has gone beyond conventional disposable insulin injections, with the development of the insulin pen that holds multiple replaceable insulin cartridges and the insulin pump, a delivery device about the size of a deck of cards that can be worn on a narrow, flexible plastic tubing that ends with a needle inserted just under the skin, it can be set to administer a steady trickle of insulin pump can be programmed to release higher doses of insulin at meals and at times when blood glucose is expected to spike.

In my practice, I’ve seen many teenagers come in to the clinic with unbelievably high blood sugar levels and who eventually developed diabetes. If you are a parent who has a family history of the disease, I strongly advise you to encourage your children to eat a healthy diet and engage in regular exercise while discouraging them from spending too much time in front of the TV or personal computer. Start now.

Diabetes is a chronic, complex disease that requires a multidisciplinary treatment approach. The Endocrine, Metabolic and Diabetes Center (EMDC) of St. Luke’s Medical Center is unique, one-stop shop that offers a complete range of diagnostic tests and treatment modalities under the supervision of a multidisciplinary team of highly trained specialists. Some tests, such as the insulin is present in the patient’s body, are available only at the center.

The EMDC has a particular focus on diabetes patient education that includes self-care, home glucose monitoring and insulin self-administration. It likewise has a strong research thrust, including the molecular aspects of diabetes, and holds a weekly conference where doctors discuss the latest research and treatment trends of the disease.

Treatment options for diabetes mellitus are now broader and more effective, but remember that prevention is always better than cure.