By Tim Barless
The incidence of diabetes (click here) is growing at 7 per cent to 10 per cent a year and has resulted in an increase in amputations of 25 per cent in two years, according to Diabetes NSW.
"We talk about this issue as the [medical] tsunami of the modern age," says Sturt Eastwood, the chief executive of the organisation.
Type 2 diabetes - which can be delayed or prevented in 58 per cent of cases - represents 85 per cent to 90 per cent of all diabetes cases. It usually develops in adults over the age of 45 years but is increasingly occurring in younger age groups.
It is a chronic condition that occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin and/or the insulin does not work effectively to meet the body's needs. It is managed by lifestyle changes such as following a healthy eating plan and doing regular physical activity....
