Dr Kevin D. Amoussou : “Diabetes makes the body more vulnerable…”

In recent years, the prevalence of diabetes has increased faster in low- and middle-income countries. The World Health Organization estimates that 422 million the number of people suffering from diabetes in the world in 2014 and anticipates that it will be in 2030 the 7th leading cause of death in the world. In this special issue of our Health section, Dr Kevin D. Amoussou, General practitioner and Chief Medical Officer of the Agla Health Center discusses the subject. Read instead !!!

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a chronic disease that results from insufficient production of insulin by the pancreas and/or ineffectiveness of insulin in regulating the amount of sugar in the blood..  Indeed, insulin is a hormone that is normally produced by the pancreas and regulates the amount of sugar in the blood by promoting its use or storage by our cells. It happens that this hormone is produced in insufficient quantity or that the cells are no longer fully sensitive to its effect.. Either way the sugar builds up in the blood more than it should,  giving what is called hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) sustainably (chronic). This chronic hyperglycemia leads to many alterations in the body, particularly in the nerves and blood vessels. : it's diabetes.

What are the different types of diabetes and what causes them?

Diabetes is classified into 4 types each corresponding to an occurrence process. Type diabetes is distinguished 1, type 2 (most frequently), gestational diabetes, and specific diabetes.

type diabetes 1 is linked to the destruction of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. This destruction most often involves an autoimmune process, i.e. the subject's immune system attacks its own healthy cells. Because of the destruction of these cells, the production of insulin by the pancreas is no longer done properly, which leads to a chronic increase in the level of sugar in the blood as described above.

The mechanism of onset of diabetes type 2 is the decrease in the sensitivity of cells to insulin. Insulin produced by the pancreas is misused by the body and sugar builds up in the blood. The onset of type diabetes 2 is linked to a genetic predisposition but also and above all to factors such as obesity, physical inactivity (lack of physical activity), excessive consumption of saturated fats and fast sugars. Gestational diabetes that occurs during pregnancy, and is characterized by an increase in blood sugar levels above normal values. Overweight women before pregnancy, those with an advanced age during pregnancy, those who have diabetes in their family, and those who have already given birth more than five (5) times are most exposed. Specific diabetes is induced by other diseases or by certain drugs that cause disorders of insulin production or efficiency..

What are the symptoms of diabetes?

People with diabetes may complain of urinating too much, to drink excessively, to be constantly hungry, lose weight and feel intense fatigue. These symptoms can be less noisy especially for type diabetes 2, with the risk of a sneaky evolution towards complications.

What are the complications of diabetes ?

In general, diabetes makes the body more vulnerable to any health problem., but apart from that, several complications can occur either acutely (occurring over a short period of time, can lead to coma) either chronically.

For those with chronic (occurring over a long period of time), Diabetes exposes to the occurrence of complications related to the damage of the nerves and blood vessels so among other things we have : an increased risk of stroke (stroke, causing, for example, the paralysis of a part of the body); an increased risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) ; chronic renal failure; visual disturbances (retinal damage) ; chronic wounds including diabetic foot Etc…

Can diabetes be cured and what is the probability of dying from it??

As mentioned above, diabetes is a chronic disease., this implies that it cannot be definitively cured, however it is possible and essential to control it. It exists according to the type and level of evolution of treatments to improve the availability and effectiveness of insulin. Apart from medication, people with diabetes should adopt or maintain a healthy lifestyle. When diabetes is controlled by keeping sugar levels within normal ranges, the onset of complications is greatly slowed down.

However, when this is not the case, diabetes can quickly lead to death. For example, it is estimated that 1,5 million the number of people who died worldwide from diabetes in 2021.

What precautions to take if you have diabetes ?

If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you must see a doctor for regular follow-up. You will need to follow a treatment adapted to the type of your diabetes and its stage of evolution. In all cases, this care involves compliance with very specific lifestyle and dietary rules, including a healthy and balanced diet and physical activity..

What to do to avoid diabetes, especially in terms of dietary rules?

Respect for a healthy and balanced diet and the practice of sufficient physical activity remain the basic rules for good health, but they are particularly important for avoiding diabetes..

In terms of food, tell us the rules to follow?

Choose foods based on their glycemic index. It is necessary to avoid the consumption of fast sugars and to favor the consumption of slow sugars. All the foods we eat according to their glycemic index, i.e. their ability to raise blood sugar levels over a two-hour period. Foods that have high glycemic indexes called fast sugars put us at a greater risk of developing diabetes. These are all foods containing refined sugar such as sugary drinks, the biscuits, spreads, jams, sweetened yogurts, most processed foods… there are also cereals and refined cereal flours and their derivatives (wheat flour, cakes, pain baguette, couscous, overcooked pasta, maize porridge aklui, yovodoko…), but also beer, honey. It is necessary to prefer foods with a medium or low glycemic index like all vegetables,  sweet potato, yam, the lawyer, plain yogurt, fresh fruit (not fruit juice), oat flakes, soy flour…

Avoid consumption of high fat foods, too salty, too sweet. In this regard, it should be noted that the kitchen “modern” African is precisely sometimes too salty and too greasy. In addition, the choice of fats consumed must be reviewed.. Avoid ultra-refined vegetable oils such as the so-called yellow peanut oil sold in most shops under our skies and favor virgin oils (olive, palme) moderately. Once the choice of food has been made, we must create healthy and balanced menus. A balanced meal consists of approximately 50% carbohydrates, 30% of lipids and 20% protein (half vegetable and half animal). Do not hesitate to consult nutrition professionals to forge a healthy balanced diet in a sustainable way. Alcohol and tobacco consumption should be avoided while doing at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per day. For example 30 minutes walk or 10000 not per day. Also it is necessary to lose weight if you are overweight and obese. This requires a healthier diet and a little more intense physical activity. Anyway, you have to go for a blood test regularly from 40 years in order to detect early signs of glucose intolerance.

Collected Comments: par Damien TOLOMISSI