The Opera House in Sydney, Flinders Street Station in Melbourne, Old Parliament House in Canberra, Brisbane City Hall and many more buildings and monuments throughout Australia will all soon be coloured blue.
It’s not a massive repaint job, it will simply be done with lights; however, this blue tinge won’t only apply to buildings in Australia. The Jet d’eau in Geneva, the Empire State Building in New York and the London Eye will all turn blue for a night or two.
And there will be hundreds of other buildings too, coloured blue all round the world from Albania to the Virgin Islands.
The reason is a truly international effort to raise awareness of diabetes.
This year World Diabetes Day – November 14 – has been recognised by the United Nations with the theme Diabetes in Children and Adults. It’s an acknowledgement that diabetes is not only one of the fastest growing chronic diseases among older people, but it is of increasing concern because of its increasing prevalence among children.
Diabetes is the name given to the condition where our body is unable to use glucose properly – and glucose is our major energy source, the fuel which keeps our body functioning effectively.
Insulin is the hormone or chemical messenger which is formed in the body and controls the level of glucose in muscles, liver and fat tissues. Problems can occur when either insufficient insulin is produced (type 1 diabetes), or there is so-called insulin resistance – that is, the body fails to respond to its own insulin (type 2 diabetes).
Uncontrolled diabetes poses a serious threat to our health and well being. Complications can include blindness, kidney failure and particularly increased risk of heart attack and stroke.
Diabetes can strike children at any age, including pre-school children and even toddlers. Yet diabetes in children is often diagnosed late, or it is misdiagnosed completely. In many parts of the world, insulin, the main live-saving medication that children with diabetes need to survive, is not available (or it is available but remains inaccessible for reasons of economy, geography or constraints on supply). As a consequence, many children die of diabetes, particularly in low and middle-income countries. Those closest to the child – family, school staff, family doctor – may not be aware of the ominous signs.
Today, more than 240 million people worldwide are living with diabetes. Within 20 years, this number is expected to grow to 380 million. Children certainly are not spared from this global epidemic, with its debilitating and life-threatening complications.
Type 2 diabetes was once seen as a disease only of adults. Today, this type of diabetes is growing at alarming rates in children and adolescents as well.
World Diabetes Day aims to raise awareness of the increase in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents. Early diagnosis and early education are crucial to reducing complications and saving lives.
You can get more information about diabetes from the Diabetes Australia website at www.diabetesaustralia.com.au or pick up a fact card from a pharmacy providing the Pharmaceutical Society’s Self Care health information. Call 1300 369 772 for the nearest location.
