Diabetes impairs ‘learning abilities of schoolchildren'

The study, carried out by Sultan Ayoub Meo, a professor at King Saud University (KSU), discovered these disorders among children, while cautioning parents, medical institutions and government agencies to do more to control the disease. "In fact, children who suffered from diabetes got lower grades in various subjects, including biology, physics, chemistry, mathematics, in their school examinations compared to their non-diabetic class fellows," said Meo, citing his own study that has been published in a European journal. The finding raises alarm, as diabetes is now becoming a common disease among children, the Arab News reports. The disease, which affects the future of children, will be more prevalent if no initiatives are taken to control or overcome it. Physicians must consider the cognitive impairment of diabetic patients as seriously as other complications of diabetes, Meo said. He said the incidence of this disease and its complications can be minimized through maintaining a healthy diet, regular physical activity, maintaining a normal body weight and avoiding cigarette smoking. He pointed out that the Arab world countries with the highest prevalence of type 2 diabetes are Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, UAE, Qatar and Oman. Saudi Arabia has the highest incidence of diabetes, which crosses the red line of 30 percent, and the disease is becoming more common among the obese and children, besides those living in urban areas.