Women are indispensable when it comes to management of lifestyle diseases like Type 2 diabetes in India. This is the conclusion of a study by The Heal Foundation, a Mumbai-based non-profit organisation.
Spurred by the finding, The Heal Foundation in association with the Ministry of Health, Family Welfare, WHO and Project Hope launched an initiative, Women 4 Diabetes, on Tuesday.
According to the study done on 500 Mumbai families with at least one member with long-standing diabetic problems, women in the roles of mothers, wives and daughters constitute 90% of caregivers of diabetic patients.
“People die of diabetic complications and not diabetes. Diabetes complications are caused by poor disease management. Therefore, the role of women in managing diabetes and even preventing it is huge,” said Ranjeeta Vinil, founder director of Saarathi Healthcare Pvt Ltd.
There are three main aspects of management of Type-2 diabetes, a healthy diet, exercise, and regular monitoring of the disease. “And women actively participate in the implementation of all three aspects,” said Dr Sonal Modi, chief nutritionist and diabetes educator at Dr Chandalia’s Diabetes Endocrine Nutrition Management Centre.
The aim of the Women 4 Diabetes initiative is to spread awareness and educate women about how they can help diabetics manage the disease better.
The biggest hindrance to successful diabetes management is lack of proper monitoring, said R Shankar, president of The Heal Foundation.
“We have found that 80% of the patients have modified their diets after regular hospital visits. However, only 14% regularly go to hospital to get glucose tests done. Also, 80% of the patients prefer going to the lab to get the test done as opposed to doing it at home. Patients generally tend to postpone their visits. It is women who drive their family members to get their blood sugar levels checked.”
Shankar said that sometimes women are reluctant to adopt a healthy diet plan because it can be restrictive and the cooking process can be cumbersome. “Nutritionists should modify existing diets giving consideration to historical, cultural and individual factors,” said Dr Modi.
Vinil said it was a bit unfair to put the responsibility of providing care on women. “But that’s how our society is organised. Men should begin participating in these matters. It will add tremendous value to the management of diseases like diabetes in India,” she added.
