The Ministry of Health avows its dedication to recognizing the most efficacious diabetes prevention programs

Sheikh Dr. Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani, Director of the Public Health Department at the Ministry of Public Health, affirmed that the Ministry is committed to working to improve the health of future generations and working to identify the best diabetes prevention and treatment programs. During the second Qatar Diabetes and Obesity Research Symposium, he referred to the relationship between obesity and diabetes, and said that while the exact causes of diabetes are still not fully understood, it is believed that obesity constitutes 60-70 percent of the risk of type 2 diabetes. He added that preventing obesity through weight control, adherence to healthy food, and physical activity may be the key to preventing diabetes, as obesity prevention also prevents insulin resistance and reduces the conversion of glucose into fatty acids and its storage as fat. The Ministry of Public Health organized the symposium in cooperation with Qatar National Institute of Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolic Diseases and Hamad Medical Corporation, in conjunction with the 7th Qatar Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases Annual Conference. The symposium discussed many important clinical research topics, and local and international researchers and heads of research spoke in the presence of more than 500 participants. Professor Shahrad Taheri, Chairman of the National Diabetes Strategy Research Subcommittee and Director of the National Center for Obesity Treatment, said that the field of research in obesity and diabetes faces important challenges in the future, and therefore the symposium enhances cooperation between scientists and institutions in Qatar, which aims to accelerate research in the field of diabetes and obesity and promote Quality of treatment for people with diabetes and obesity in Qatar. He pointed out that the National Diabetes Committee organizes and provides free live webinars accredited by the Center for Professional Development in the field of diabetes and obesity research for health care professionals in the health sector, as the virtual seminars that are held every two weeks provide continuous updates on the main research projects related to diabetes and obesity that are being conducted. In Qatar, it serves as a valuable resource for the multidisciplinary community of researchers, physicians, nurses and allied health care professionals. For her part, Dr. Kholoud Al-Mutawa, Head of the Non-Communicable Diseases Department at the Ministry of Public Health, and Co-Chair of the National Diabetes Committee, said that the 2023 Diabetes and Obesity Research Symposium succeeded in providing information about new developments in diabetes and obesity research in Qatar and reviewing a number of research and discussions presented by national researchers. and international specialists in this field. In turn, Professor Abdel-Badih Abu Samra, Co-Chair of the National Diabetes Committee and Director of the National Institute of Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolic Diseases at Hamad Medical Corporation, said that diabetes and obesity are among the major health challenges in the world. In Qatar, the rate of diabetes is 17% in adults, which is what Almost twice the global average, 20% of the population has prediabetes. He drew attention to the association between obesity and type 2 diabetes. In Qatar, specifically, it is estimated that obesity is the leading cause of diabetes in Qatar and that it is responsible for about two out of three cases of type 2 diabetes. He stressed that losing weight through early interventions appropriate to lifestyle can prevent diabetes and also reverse the course of diabetes, as proven through research conducted at the Qatar National Institute of Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolic Diseases at Hamad Medical Corporation. During the symposium, the National Diabetes Committee was assigned to develop a plan on obesity in Qatar to be included in the upcoming national diabetes action plan.