BY GEORGE NAVA TRUE II
THIS is sweet news for four million Filipinos with type 2 diabetes in the Philippines.
Novo Nordisk, a global leader in diabetes care, recently introduced an innovative weekly treatment for the disease.
The innovative drug is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist that has been used in over 10,000 type 2 diabetes patients worldwide.
But that’s just the icing on the cake. The best part is that the drug has significantly reduced both blood sugar levels and body weight compared to other commonly used treatments. It also provides cardiovascular benefits.
Vital role
Even H.E. Grete Sillasen, ambassador of the Royal Danish Embassy in Manila was elated by this development. She said that Novo Nordisk continues to play a vital role in introducing research and development-based innovative diabetes treatment to Filipinos.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, diabetes is the fourth leading cause of death in the Philippines. It killed 37,300 people in 2020. At the top of the heap are ischemic heart diseases which caused 99,700 deaths in the same year.
Complications
What’s worse is that the four million Filipinos with diabetes also have other diseases (comorbidities) and complications like heart disease (over 32%) and obesity (more than 87%). Worse, 85% have uncontrolled blood sugar levels.
“For the past three years, ischemic heart disease, cancer, and pneumonia have been listed as the top three causes of death in Filipinos, with diabetes following in fourth place. However, the increase in ischemic heart disease is only 2.3%, while cancer went down by about 10%, and pneumonia by about 6%. Diabetes went up by 7.8%,” revealed Dr. Gilbert C. Vilela, vice president of the Philippine Heart Association.
To make matters worse, Vilela said that the pandemic and subsequent lockdown have directly affected diabetes control. He said this is due to the lack of accessibility, the limitation of movement and lack of exercise, and an increase in anxiety and fear among patients and their families.
Change should come
Dr. Michael Villa, president of the Philippine Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, said that patients must change their behavior, especially since there are new treatment options that address both blood sugar levels and the risks that come with the disease.
“Type 2 diabetes makes up about 85% of the population. These adult patients have multiple risk factors. Some are smokers, others are hypertensive, while the rest have cholesterol problems. This is an area that needs to be addressed,” he said.
Novo Nordisk is committed to developing innovative medicines to help Filipinos with diabetes lead longer and healthier lives. This is the unique Novo Nordisk brand of care, according to Cihan Serdar Kizilcik, vice president and general manager of Novo Nordisk Philippines.
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National Press Club and Philippine Dental Association awardee George N. True II has written two bestsellers based on his popular column which has been running for almost 40 years. For questions about health, email georgenavatrue@yahoo.com.
