According to the reports released by SRL Diagnostics, about 66.11% of children in India have “abnormal levels of sugar” in their body. Around 17,000 children were screened and tested over a period of three years. A total of 51.76% male children were found having abnormal HbAlc levels. The main aim of this survey is to check and monitor the response to diabetes therapy and diagnose pre-diabetes and diabetes in children.

According to World Health Organization, 80% of all new cases of diabetes are predicted to occur in the developing countries by 2025. In 2012, an estimated 1.5 million deaths were directly caused by diabetes and more than 80% of diabetes deaths occur in low and middle-income countries. Rapid urbanization, change in eating habits and shifting more focus to indoor activities have resulted in dramatic lifestyle changes.

Zone Wise Analysis:

“Western Zone had the highest percentage of abnormality with 68.48% while eastern and northern zone had 61.48% and 64.71%, respectively. Among the four zones, southern India showed the lowest percentage of abnormality with 54.95%,” said Leena Chatterjee, Director, Fortis SRL Labs and SRL Strategic Initiatives, which carried out the survey. It is also projected that diabetes will be the 7th leading cause of death in 2030.

Key findings of the study:

1. Test conducted on children between the age group of 0-15 years.
2. Western India has the  highest percentage of abnormality while the lowest percentage of abnormality, among all, was seen in southern India.
3. People with diabetes are two to four times more likely to have heart disease including children.

It’s pretty difficult to cut out sugar completely, but one can start by skipping it in milk, choosing non-sugary breakfasts, avoiding juice beverages, and limiting bread, pasta, and rice. “It is essential that children and adolescents get themselves tested if they are overweight with body weight exceeding 120% of the ideal weight or they have a positive family history among first and second-degree relatives and if they have signs of insulin resistance,” Chatterjee said.

Dr. Leena Chatterjee says, “Diabetes has emerged as a major burden for India over the last two decades. This disease further leads to other disorders which are afflicted with children like obesity, obstructive sleep apnoea, nausea, drowsiness, weight loss, frequent urination in large amounts etc. As they reach adulthood, the problem related to kidneys and strokes starts amalgamating. These days, even Type 2 diabetes is being easily developed in children which have been mostly common in adults.”

“One of the reason is it being hard to monitor what children are eating when they are at school or when they visit friends. Children and teenagers who are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes have a short life expectancy. It is advised that those with Type 2 diabetes in their families must visit their physicians frequently and make healthy choices earlier in life,” Chatterjee said.