Bitter news: Diabetes 'to hit 502 Saudis by 2030'

(MENAFN- Arab News) If no action is taken the number of Saudi nationals with diabetes is expected to jump from 24 to 50 percent by 2030 the International Diabetes Federation said in a report run by a local publication.A global conference on diabetes in Alkhobar has meanwhile proposed that nine government agencies set up a national project to fight diabetes and obesity in the Kingdom local media said.Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the conference Abdulaziz Al-Turki board chairman of the Saudi Society for Diabetes and Endocrinology (SSDE) in the Eastern Province said the situation is alarming and would have negative health social and economic consequences for Saudi society. He said a national project would likely reduce forecasts to 35 percent by 2030.Kamil Salama secretary general of the SSDE said Saudi Arabia has one of the highest number of diabetes patients in the Middle East and North Africa region and is ranked seventh globally based on documented figures.In terms of obesity Saudi Arabia ranks fifth and third globally and in the Gulf Cooperation Council respectively. Currently 36 percent of the Saudi population is obese. The rate of obesity among Saudi children stands at 18 percent or 3 million children with 50 percent of them likely to develop diabetes he said.The treatment costs for an obese patient is $1333 (SR4998) whereas the Ministry of Health spends on diabetes nearly $10 billion (SR37.5 billion) or 34 percent of its allocated budget he said.