The severity of diabetes in elderly people depends on the lifestyle followed by their families, Deputy for Family Welfare and Family Empowerment at the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN), Nopian Andusti, said here on Tuesday.

“The family must really pay attention and they must monitor every activity and condition of the elderly in the family,” he added.

High blood sugar levels over a long period can accelerate the onset of dementia, lead to premature aging, and trigger the emergence of several diseases due to complications, he explained.

These complications can cause hypertension, stroke, blindness, and kidney failure that can threaten a person’s life, he added.

Many complications can be prevented if family caregivers understand the symptoms of diabetes, namely thirst, frequent urination, weight loss for no apparent reason, weakness, blurred vision, wounds that are difficult to heal, and frequent infection, Andusti said.

Furthermore, families can pay attention to the elderly using gadgets or taking part in community gatherings, he added.

The happiness from these activities can have a positive effect on their mindset and encourage them to live a healthy life, he explained. It is also important to take the elderly for regular health check-ups, he added.

He also emphasized that families are responsible for ensuring the elderly consume healthy and nutritious foods that are not contaminated with preservatives. Such foods can help control the blood sugar level, he expounded.

“Remember, diabetes cannot be cured, but it can be controlled. To understand what the symptoms of diabetes are, the family needs to pay attention to the diet given, especially sweet or instant foods,” Andusti said.

BKKBN can help families to protect the elderly from diabetes by helping them take healthy exercise under the Elderly Family Development (BKL) program and the GoLantang application, which provides health education and helps control health through a calculator, he said.​​​​​​​

Andusti expressed the hope that all families would pay more attention by nurturing the elderly to prevent various kinds of diseases.

“Keep in mind, every elderly person was once young, but no one can assure whether the young can grow old. Therefore, from a young age, we must prepare ourselves to be a strong elderly,” he added.

Source: Antara News