Naturopathic Solutions

This article from the New Zealand Herald describes the health risk from diabetes 2 that its native Maori population is facing.  In fact, according to the article, an expert in diabetes, Professor Martin Silink, who heads the Brussels-based International Diabetes Foundation, has said that diabetes could wipe out the Maori and Polynesian Islanders by the end of the century.  Indigenous people have a much greater risk of contracting type 2 diabetes than do other peoples.

This increased risk of contracting diabetes when coupled with the overall worldwide trend towards obesity is having devastating results.  Apparently, diabetes was practically unknown in the Pacific prior to World War II, but now this region has some of the highest rates in the world.

Throughout the world, approximately 6% of adults have Type 2 Diabetes, or approximately 230 million.  However, among indigenous people, almost 50% are so affected.   Many cases go undiagnosed.

Maori females are ten times more likely to die of the disease than their Caucasian counterparts.

Type 2 diabetes is also wrecking devastating results on the US population but its impact on the native population of New Zealand is nothing short of horrific.  Let’s hope that the New Zealand government’s efforts at education and treatment help turn this situation around.

Type 2 diabetes is directly correlated with obesity.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 14th, 2006 at 3:04 pm and is filed under Main Page. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.