As many as one in three Marylanders with Type 2 diabetes don?t even know they are sick, health officials said Tuesday.
Kicking off Baltimore Diabetes Alert Day, city Health Commissioner Dr. Joshua Sharfstein joined representatives of the American Diabetes Association in front of a banner reading, “Sometimes sugar ain?t so sweet.”
The event, at the Enoch Pratt Free Library?s main branch downtown, is meant to draw attention to diabetes and its prevention while offering guidance to those diagnosed with the disease.
“While diabetes is increasing, the growth can be prevented, and for those who have it, the disease can be managed,” Sharfstein said. “That can mean the difference of years of your life, the difference between having a relatively normal life and having serious complications.”
Often described as a “silent disease,” Type 2, or adult-onset, diabetes results from having high blood sugar over a long period.
Obesity, smoking and a sedentary lifestyle contribute to diabetes.
But, experts say, losing even a modest amount of weight, cutting fatty foods and eating more fruits and vegetables can help stop the onset of Type 2 diabetes or, for those who have it, help manage the disease.
Nearly half a million Maryland residents have diabetes. Pregnant women and those with high birth-weight babies, as well as blacks, Asians and Hispanics are more likely to develop the disease.
Diabetes can damage eye, nerve, kidney and heart tissue and lead to limb amputations, but most people won?t know they have the disease until serious damage has begun, said John M. Colmers, secretary of the state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
“The symptoms of Type 2 diabetes are subtle,” Colmers said. “People can go undiagnosed for five to 10 years before complications become evident.”
Baltimore residents are disproportionately affected by diabetes, and the number of people diagnosed with diabetes has nearly doubled, to 10.3 percent, in the past decade.
The Pratt library and its partners have announced a series of events aimed at combating obesity and Type 2 diabetes, from a visit by the U.S. surgeon general to a family activity day on April 19, as well as online and telephone support and testing.
