Three diabetes associations in Israel jointly announce diabetes awareness month

For the first time, all diabetes bodies in Israel will join forces and mobilize politicians and business leaders in order to lower the alarming growth of diabetes, which currently stands at 5% per year

The National Diabetes Council, the Israeli Diabetes Association and the Juvenile Diabetes Association will join forces for the first time on Monday, November 22, 2010 at the Tel Aviv Exhibition Center for a unique event with the participation of politicians, business leaders, economists and policy makers under the title "Diabetes, the epidemic of the 21st century - it can be stopped" .

According to the data of the National Diabetes Council, in recent years there has been a sharp increase in the incidence of diabetes at a rate of 38% in women and 29% in men. About half a million diabetics live in Israel today, and another half a million Israelis are in a state of latent diabetes. Every year about 30 thousand new patients are discovered in Israel and it will continue and grow at a rate of about 5% per year.

The event will be held with the aim of discussing effective ways to reduce the alarming growth and to create a real change in the spread of diabetes by changing the lifestyle of the citizens of the State of Israel, eating right, exercising and preventing obesity. In contrast to events of a health nature that have been held up to now in the field of diabetes, this event will be attended by senior officials of the economy and the economy, ministers, Knesset members, policymakers and mayors and their sons, Prof. Avishai Braverman, Minister of Minority Affairs, Yitzhak Bouzi Herzog, Minister of Welfare, Ron Huldai, Mayor of Tel Aviv, MK Meir Shitrit, MK Efi Itam, MK Rochama Avraham, MK Rachel Adato, Moti Keren, Chairman and CEO of the Unilever Israel Group, MK Shai Hormesh, MK Yoel Hasson , Haim Ramon, Uri Shani, Commissioner of the Water Service, Shmuel Frankel, Chairman and CEO of Epsilon, MK Avi Dichter, MK Zeev Bialski, Shlomo Ahronishki, former Police Commissioner, Attorney Zvi Agmon, Danny Ben Naim , CEO of Comtech, Dr. Giora Yaron, Chairman of the Implementation Company, Yaakov Litzman, Deputy Minister of Health, Dr. Roni Gamzo, Director General of the Ministry of Health, Prof. Itamar Raz, Chairman of the National Diabetes Council, Prof. Yehoshua Shemer , the chairman of Assuta and many others.

Prof. Itamar Raz, chairman of the National Diabetes Council, said today that: "In 1990, about 280 diabetics lived in Israel, today the number has increased and intensified to 500 patients." The alarming rise brought us to the brink of an abyss. We decided to unite joint forces with industry, the economy, the economy and the government to harness everyone to reduce the dimensions of the disease."

Prof. Moti Ravid, the chairman of the Israeli Diabetes Association emphasized that: "In order to raise generations of healthy children and young people here, we need the help of the education system, the health system, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the local authorities, the army and the food industry"

Diabetes data in Israel

According to the data of the National Diabetes Council, there are about half a million diabetics living in Israel today, and another half a million Israelis are in a state of latent diabetes. Every year, about 30 thousand new patients are discovered in Israel. Every year about 2,500 Israelis die from diabetes, every year about 1,700 amputations occur in Israel, and about 1,400 of them are directly caused by diabetes. One out of three children born in Israel will develop diabetes during their lifetime. Diabetes causes blindness, kidney disease and dialysis, amputation, heart disease and brain disease. In recent years, there has been a sharp increase in the incidence of diabetes at a rate of 38% in women and 29% in men. The life expectancy of a diabetic patient is about 10 years less than healthy people. Diabetes is the number one cause of blindness in Israel. Diabetics make up over fifty percent of dialysis patients and seventy percent of those hospitalized in intensive care units.

Diabetes data in the world

According to the data of the World Health Organization, over 300 million people worldwide have diabetes and this number will double within 30 years. The diabetes epidemic is halting economic growth through disability and loss of life as a result of the disease and its related complications. Diabetes is a financial burden on the patient, his family members and the health system and is estimated to cost approximately 376 billion dollars in 2010, or 11.6% of the total global expenditure on health. According to the data of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), approximately 344 million additional people are at risk of developing diabetes. If nothing is done to change the trend of the epidemic, the federation predicts that by 2030 438 million people will live with diabetes and the expected cost will exceed 490 billion dollars.