Source – https://www.timesnownews.com/
According to new research from the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, first nations children are experiencing a double burden of physical and mental illness.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Diabetes is one of the most common conditions that affects millions of people around the world
- According to a study, children who suffer from diabetes are likely to have a high rate of mood disorders such as depression or anxiety
- Here is all you need to know about the link between the two
New Delhi: Diabetes – be it type 1 diabetes, or type 2 diabetes, is increasing manifold around the world, every year, so much so that it has been labelled an epidemic by some. While type 2 diabetes is a lifestyle disorder, type 1 diabetes is an auto-immune disorder that affects the pancreas, thereby causing the disease. The incidence of children born with type 1 diabetes, or those who develop it soon after birth, is on a rise, globally, especially in the first world countries.
Diabetes, however, is not just about physical health, as previously believed. According to new research from the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, first nations children are experiencing a double burden of physical and mental illness.
Here is what the study says
According to the study, the rate of type 2 diabetes among young people is rising dramatically, and the majority of these children are of the First Nations heritage.
These children were also 25 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, as compared to other kids, one of the authors of the study said.
Another study, conducted in Ontario, and published in February in the Canadian Medical Association Journal showed that between 1995 and 2014, both the prevalence and incidence of all types of diabetes were “substantially higher” among the First Nations people than among other people in Ontario.
“The kids we see with diabetes have high rates of other co-morbidities — liver disease, kidney disease, they have high rates of obesity,” Sellers, one of the authors of the study, said. “They don’t just have Type 2 diabetes.”
Beyond the physical ailments, the Manitoba research also discovered that young First Nations people with Type 2 diabetes have high rates of mental health disorders, “and in particularly high rates of mood and anxiety disorders and high rates of suicide and suicide attempts,” she said.
Sellers, a pediatric diabetes specialist, treats children from Manitoba and from First Nations in the Sioux Lookout zone in northwestern Ontario, where she said many of the health concerns are the same, as families are connected across the provincial boundary.
What could possibly be the link between type 2 diabetes, and mental health issues?
According to the researchers of the study, more data will have to be found on this to establish a causal link. While people are aware that physical ailments can cause stress and anxiety among people, to understand if there exists a direct link is something that needs to be looked into.
Researchers will also have to see which of the two is the cause, and which is the effect of the former – if living with a mental health issue can trigger type 2 diabetes, or vice versa.
Researchers also believe that this may have link with racial or communal discrimination which not only has an effect on the living conditions of people, but also on their psychological health.