Diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, and peripheral vascular complications are no longer isolated health problems in India. These conditions have formed a dangerous interconnected chain affecting millions across all age groups, according to medical specialists who participated in recent awareness webinars.
The Medithon webinars, organized by Meril in partnership with The Times of India around World Diabetes Day on November 14, brought together experts from multiple specialties to provide a comprehensive understanding of these interconnected health threats. The sessions emphasized that early awareness, timely medical intervention, and informed lifestyle choices can prevent life-altering complications.
The Growing Epidemic: Diabetes and Obesity
Medical professionals consistently stress that diabetes and obesity are chronic diseases rather than lifestyle failures. Dr. Jayashree Todkar explained that obesity involves complex metabolic, hormonal, and inflammatory changes that significantly increase the risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancers, and joint problems.
Dr. Nandakishore Dukkipati detailed how excess fat, particularly around the abdomen, drives insulin resistance, making it increasingly difficult for the body to manage glucose levels. This biological process dramatically elevates the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
When questioned about lifestyle connections to coronary artery disease, Dr. Chandra Prakash Thakur confirmed that diet and exercise directly influence CAD risk factors. Dr. B. Srihari reinforced this by advising maintenance of normal blood sugar levels and healthy eating habits to reduce cardiovascular risks.
Why India Must Address Diabetes Seriously
World Diabetes Day serves as a crucial reminder of the seriousness of this condition. Doctors highlight that diabetes extends beyond high blood sugar levels, enabling numerous dangerous conditions including heart disease, silent heart attacks, kidney damage, vision loss, peripheral vascular disease, and lower-limb amputations.
The situation is particularly concerning since many Indians remain undiagnosed, delaying treatment and allowing complications to progress silently without detection.
Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery: A Life-Changing Solution
For individuals struggling with severe obesity or obesity-driven diabetes, bariatric and metabolic surgery offers transformative benefits. Unlike temporary dietary solutions, surgery produces physiological changes by altering gut hormones and improving insulin sensitivity, potentially reversing diabetes in many patients.
Common procedures available in India include sleeve gastrectomy and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Remarkably, diabetes remission rates after surgery reach up to 40% within one year, with many patients maintaining long-term improvements.
The medical experts highlighted several crucial points about modern bariatric surgery:
- The procedures are safe when performed at experienced medical centers
- Patients still require lifestyle modifications post-surgery
- Women can safely pursue pregnancy after 12-18 months
- Insurance coverage for these surgeries is increasing across India
Importantly, metabolic surgery is no longer considered merely a last resort. Current medical guidelines support earlier intervention, especially for Asian populations who face metabolic vulnerabilities even at lower BMI levels.
Peripheral Vascular Disease: The Silent Diabetes Threat
One of the most underestimated diabetes complications is Peripheral Vascular Disease, particularly Critical Limb-Threatening Ischemia and diabetic foot conditions. Dr. Varinder Singh Bedi explained that elevated blood sugar damages both blood vessels and nerves, allowing minor cuts or blisters to develop into serious ulcers.
The reduced pain sensation caused by neuropathy means many patients don't notice injuries until they've significantly worsened. Dr. Vijay Thakore offered crucial advice for caregivers, urging them to monitor any color changes, blisters, or temperature variations in diabetic patients' feet and report abnormalities immediately to doctors.
Dr. Muralikrishna Nekkanti provided a memorable analogy, suggesting that diabetic patients should care for their feet as attentively as they do their faces, regularly checking for injuries or unusual changes.
The specialists identified key factors that make diabetic foot conditions particularly dangerous:
- Compromised blood supply
- Delayed healing processes
- Reduced sensation
- Heightened infection risk
Tragically, many patients reach vascular specialists only when gangrene or severe ulcers have developed. Early evaluation could prevent a significant percentage of amputations.
Modern vascular medicine has moved away from amputation-first approaches. Today, specialists employ advanced techniques including drug-eluting balloons, atherectomy, bioresorbable scaffolds, pedal loop reconstruction, and hybrid revascularization to preserve limbs, restore mobility, and protect long-term quality of life.
Multidisciplinary care involving diabetologists, vascular surgeons, podiatrists, wound care nurses, and physiotherapists dramatically improves patient outcomes.
Prevention: The Ultimate Defense Strategy
Throughout the webinars, doctors emphasized that most diabetes-related complications are preventable. Whether addressing heart attacks, amputations, obesity-driven diabetes, or neuropathy, early intervention proves crucial.
Key preventive measures include:
For heart health: Annual cardiac screening including ECG, lipid profiles, and kidney function tests; maintaining blood pressure below 130/80; aggressive LDL control targeting below 70 mg/dL for high-risk patients.
For foot health: Daily foot inspection using mirrors; wearing soft, cushioned footwear and avoiding barefoot walking; immediate attention to minor cuts; annual vascular assessments.
For diabetes management: Maintaining HbA1c within target ranges; regular physical activity; prompt attention to unusual symptoms; avoiding smoking and excessive alcohol consumption.
When discussing post-angioplasty care, Dr. Susanta Pradhan advised patients to consistently monitor blood pressure and never skip prescribed medications.
Every specialist across bariatrics, cardiology, endocrinology, and vascular medicine concluded with the same empowering message: diabetes doesn't have to steal years from your life. Early detection, lifestyle discipline, and timely treatment can prevent the most dangerous outcomes.
Whether through metabolic surgery that reverses diabetes, drug-eluting technologies that open arteries, or foot-care protocols that prevent amputations, modern medicine offers powerful solutions. However, the essential first step begins with individual awareness and proactive health management.
The ideal defense remains early detection. Diabetes provides warning signs long before causing significant damage, and acting early represents the single most powerful strategy for maintaining health. Subtle changes in blood sugar, unusual fatigue, breathlessness, or slow-healing wounds should prompt immediate medical consultation rather than delay.
Timely intervention can prevent heart attacks, protect circulation, and stop minor issues from evolving into life-altering complications. Prevention doesn't require complexity—regular check-ups, annual cardiac screenings, daily foot care, effective sugar control, physical activity, and managed cholesterol and blood pressure collectively build a robust defense against diabetes-related vascular risks.
The true strength lies in early intervention, asking appropriate medical questions, and allowing modern medicine to provide assistance long before diseases cause irreversible damage.
