From being the ninth leading cause of death in the Philippines, diabetes has now climbed as the fifth top killer of Filipinos, the Department of Health recently announced. 

This is “very alarming,” said Diabetes Philippines president and chair Dr. Fatma Ibba Tiu in a Makati press conference recently.

“We believe diabetes cases now are higher because most of the ischemic heart disease that was recorded in cerebrovascular disease or stroke, may also be due to diabetes,” she explained. 

Not only is diabetes’ incidence on the rise; fatalities due to the illness has also increased, said Tiu.

“The mortality due to diabetes has risen from being number nine in the Department of Health and FNRI (Food and Nutrition Research Institute) registry,” she said. “So, that means we are getting more and more complications and we are getting more mortality rates due to diabetes.”

As such, Diabetes Philippines partnered with other organizations such as Watsons Philippines to spread more awareness about the disease and its comorbidities.

“We will do screening for early detection. And if you have other risk factors like hypertension, your cholesterol is high, then you might also have a heart attack, stroke,” she said. “A diabetes test prolongs your life. It’s not painful. It’s a simple blood test that can make a big, big difference in your life.”