Diabetes is growing at a terrifying speed and is quickly becoming a very real threat to young people’s living all over the world.
This metabolic disorder ranks as the fourth main cause of death in the world. If not controlled, its deadly arm strikes with heart attacks, kidney failures, blindness, amputation, and obesity.
The statistics say it all. Within the next 20 years, this metabolic disorder will reach epidemic proportions with 19,000 developing diabetes daily and that number will grow to 333 million by 2025.
Eighty percent of the cases are expected to be from developing countries like the Philippines. We have the distinction of being in top 10 as far as the number of diabetics are concerned in the country.
The scariest fact of all is that more than 50 percent of people with diabetes are unaware of their condition. This, in turn, leads to expenses amounting to millions in treating complications that arise from undiagnosed or poorly treated diabetes.
By the end of this year, diabetes will cause more than 3.8 million deaths globally — more than six percent of the total world mortality rate and similar in magnitude for those reported for HIV/AIDS in 2002. Statistics show that a person dies of a diabetes-related illness every 10 seconds.
Novo Nordisk launched “Changing Diabetes,” a three-pronged agenda focusing on education, services, and products.
As of today, the education program of Novo Nordisk will touch 2,000 doctors who will benefit at least 10,000 patients.
As part of the Changing Diabetes education program, the company introduced the “Diabetes Leadership Thought Series” where half a dozen diabetes experts from around the world will visit the Philippines to share their ideas on the latest developments in treatments and control.
The most recent of this was a visit from the Endocrinology and Metabolism department chief of Denmark’s Aarhus University Hospital, Kjeld Hermansen, MD, DMSc.
Being a world leader in diabetes treatment, Novo Nordisk aims to constantly provide better products. This year, the company launched insulin detemir. This unique modern basal insulin is very predictable and gives control with only one injection daily.
The insulin detemir comes in devices called FlexPen that makes dosage delivery more accurate and lessens the pain of inoculation. With products like these, the fear of hypoglycemia is reduced to a level where insulin injection is not feared, but welcomed.
On this occasion, Dr. Augusto Litonjua, an emeritus professor of the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and a leader in Philippine diabetes research and treatment, shared his experience with more than 400 doctors. He emphasized the early use of insulin with modern insulin for better control.
Novo Nordisk is changing diabetes through its approach in developing treatments. It is its commitment to operate on triple bottom line of being environmentally and socially responsible and not just profitable.
The company is not simply treating diabetes, but helping real people live better. It is this understanding that is behind every decision or action it takes, and this fuels its passion to change the treatment, perception, and future of diabetes for good.
Their long-term goal is to defeat diabetes through the development of a cure. Novo Nordisk has maintained a global R&D leadership position within the area of diabetes for eight decades.
Novo Nordisk is looking into ways to defeat diabetes al all stages of its progression. Being a world leader in diabetes research, care and treatment, it has detailed knowledge of the structure and function of the hormone insulin and has provided a basis for the design of modern insulin. This modern insulin has been designed to meet the individual needs of people with diabetes.
Today, Novo Nordisk offers the most complete line of diabetes products available like dependable insulin therapies that help patients regain control and normalcy in their lives.
The FlexPen, NovoLet and other patient-friendly delivery devices demonstrate the company’s initiative for finding solutions for people living with diabetes.