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Stressed and no physical exercise?

Diabetes should be checked in the 14-17 age category itself.

Chennai: Experts pointed to reduced physical activity, contributed in part by longer working hours, as a key reason behind the sudden rise in cases of Type II diabetes.

The drop in activity among Indians is estimated to be close to 50 per cent when compared to 1970s while calorie intake has increased by more than half since the turn of the millennium. “Most of us work for 10 to 15 hours each day. We tend to eat our meals at the office cafeteria where healthy food is very rare,” said A.Arathi, an Infosys employee.

"We are expected to work for 16 hours a day. At such an young age, we start developing several health problems, including osteoporosis," explained Mekha Kajuria, data analyst at a healthcare consultancy. However, the fight to curb prevalence of diabetes should start much younger, believes Dr Nihal Thomas, CMC, Vellore.

“Diabetes should be checked in the 14-17 age category itself. Unless enforced re-development of our curriculum happens, the situation will not change,” he said.

( Source : Deccan Chronicle. )
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