Diabetes and COVID-19

Diabetes has been increasingly common in the past 30 years and there are now more than 400 million people living with diabetes in the world. The two main types of diabetes are type 1 and type 2. Type 2 is much more common.

According to Dr. Gojka Roglic of WHO (World Health Organisation), people with diabetes are at higher risk than people without diabetes of having a severe illness of COVID and also dying of COVID. They are considered as a vulnerable group. Type 1 seems to also have a higher risk than type 2 of a severe COVID illness and death.

The pandemic and the measures to contain it are quite a challenge for people with diabetes. The mainstone in treatment is physical activity and a healthy diet, and that might not be possible in the pandemic conditions. Thus, people with diabetes have to be creative about how to manage to continue the recommended physical activity and a healthy diet within the constraints posed by the pandemic. It is recommended all the measures for containing the pandemic and for protecting as individuals, such as hand washing, wearing masks, ventilating indoor habitats, socializing with people preferably outdoors whenever possible, and keeping the safe physical distance.

There is also vaccination, which is recommended for people with diabetes as a priority group.