Awareness drive to defeat diabetes, obesity begins

Endocrinologists from SAARC countries have expressed their resolve to play the due role for promoting healthy lifestyle to achieve the goal of healthy society. They were speaking at the concluding session of Endocrinology Moot organised by Pakistan and South Asian Federation of Endocrine Societies (SAFES) at a local hotel. Endocrinologists from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Maldives and host Pakistan participated in the moot and shared their experiences about latest trends in diabetes and its management.
On the concluding day of the moot, a public awareness campaign titled "Run for Healthy Life" was launched. It was pointed out on the occasion that Pakistan is the 8th most obese country in the world, however, there are very limited entities working to address this concern, which is leading to diabetes and other serious diseases, putting our younger generation at risk.
The campaign is launched as a part of the broader initiative of "Changing Diabetes" by Novo Nordisk Pakistan, under which the organization has joined hands with SAFES, comprising Endocrine societies from Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sir Lanka, to create awareness about obesity, one of the most important risk factors of diabetes.
The partners of this campaign aim to prevent the increasing prevalence of obesity by reaching out to schools and broadly to younger generation and conducting awareness sessions on changing lifestyles and increase physical activities, especially running.
Speaking at the occasion, President SAFES Dr Abbas Raza said, "As experts in the field of diabetes, SAFES considers it as its prime responsibility to work for awareness that obesity and diabetes is preventable, all we need is regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle. Following these simple measures, we can save our future generation from the risk of serious diseases."
At the occasion, a special logo was unveiled for the 'Run for Healthy Life' campaign. The ceremony was attended by renowned diabetes and endocrine specialists from across South Asia, namely from Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sir Lanka, the management of Novo Nordisk, and friends from media.
Sharing his thoughts at the launch ceremony, General Manager Novo Nordisk Pakistan, Rashed Rafique said "Reaching to the roots of a disease is important to prevent its increase; obesity is one of the roots of diabetes. Therefore, we are very optimistic that this campaign will not only assist in preventing obesity but also diabetes and other diseases associated with obesity."