Diabetes is a demanding condition requiring emotional support and assistance with its day-to-day management. On World Diabetes Day this week (Wednesday, November 14), Diabetes Victoria raised awareness with the message: My diabetes family. All in it together.
According to Diabetes Victoria:
- Families come in all shapes and sizes and can include a sufferer’s healthcare team that includes pharmacists, extended family, housemates and peer support groups as well as their immediate family.
- Family plays a key support role for those living with diabetes, often providing emotional support and assistance with day-to-day diabetes management.
- There is no one-size-fits-all approach to supporting a loved one with diabetes. The experience of caring for someone with diabetes is different for everyone.
“Diabetes concerns every family,” Diabetes Victoria CEO Craig Bennett said. “We know that more than 328,000 Victorians live with diabetes and estimate that a further 125,000 Victorians have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes. Almost 80 people in Victoria develop the condition every day. With diabetes on the rise, it’s likely that everybody will know someone with diabetes.
“For every person diagnosed with diabetes there is usually a family member or carer who also ‘lives with diabetes’ every day in a support role, so we are recognising how important strong support systems at home are for people living with diabetes.”
Diabetes Victoria says that in Australia, around 1.7 million people are living with diabetes and more than 300 develop diabetes every day. Of those, the vast majority have developed type 2 diabetes, which is often linked to issues such as a poor diet or a lack of regular physical activity. In addition, one in four Victorians older than 25 is directly impacted in some way by this condition.
Joining the international Blue Monument Challenge on World Diabetes Day, Diabetes Victoria is raising awareness of the impact that diabetes has on the family and support network of all those affected by the condition. In Melbourne, Diabetes Victoria lit up the Melbourne Town Hall in blue on Wednesday as a testament to the worldwide effort to raise awareness about diabetes and to engage the global diabetes community
