Projections by the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health have indicated that Singapore is expected to have 1 million diabetics by 2050, due to an ageing population and a rise in obesity. While people should keep fit and eat healthy to prevent onset of diabetes, experts say those who are considered at risk should be screened at an earlier age.
Furthermore, 50 per cent of diabetics do not realise they have the disease as the symptoms are not obvious. But if left untreated, complications such as heart attacks, stroke and kidney failure may occur. These complications can also cost the country a significant amount.
“In 2010, there were about 180,000 diabetics in the working population,” says Professor Chia Kee Seng, Dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health. “They cost Singapore S$1 billion, majority of it due to productivity loss at the workplace (caused by) absenteeism or early withdrawal from the workforce.”
Media Coverage:
- Channel NewsAsia, 30 March 2016, Wednesday