More than four lakh children suffering from type-1 diabetes in the country are dependent on supplemental insulin, and the number is increasing every year, said doctors and experts at a programme on Monday.
They made the remarks at a day-long New Year celebration programme organised by Bangladesh Diabetic Samity (BADAS), Novo Nordisk and World Diabetes Foundation (WDF) at an amusement park in Ashulia. Some 70 children with diabetes under Changing Diabetes in Children Programme (CDiC) attended the programme.
Talking to The Daily Star, Prof AK Azad Khan, president of Diabetic Association of Bangladesh, said many families even cannot imagine that a baby can be born with the disease. So they do not get their blood tested for glucose.
At the programme, the children participated in, besides counselling and education sessions, different indoor and outdoor sports, game shows, music and dance. They also celebrated and welcomed 2013 by different activities while doctors and parents shared experiences of tackling the type-1 diabetes in the programme.
Twelve-year-old Fazle Rabbi’s mother Aleya Begum said, “Everyday he needs to take insulin twice. It’s so tough to make children maintain a regular diet and physical exercise. We always have to keep an eye on him.”
Around 1,523 diabetic children have already been registered under the CDiC programme, which started in 2010 to provide free care including insulin, syringes, glucometer & strip to diabetic children.
-With The Daily Star input
