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| World Diabetics Day | World Diabetes Day (WDD) was organized by both the World Health Organization and the International Diabetes Federation. It was established in 1991 as an awareness and educational campaign, and is now a solid campaign. The problems it touches serve as educational campaigns that last for the whole year. The theme of World Diabetes Day changes from year to year.
World Diabetes Day is held every year on November 14th. This betokens the birthday of Frederick Banting, a person who together with the other man led to the discovery of insulin through their research and theories. It became an official United Nations World Health day in 2006.
WDD is respected in over 160 different countries worldwide. Besides, there are lots of diverse organizations and groups that hold in respect the day and the campaign.
A good deal is done to bring the word out about diabetes, as the main motivation for WDD is awareness and education. Advertisements are represented in a wide variety of spectrums. In addition, lots of other events and festivals are held. Ceremonies and symbolic gestures are performed, all to incur the day in the news and to extend awareness to as many people as possible.
The purposes of WDD
Eventually, the goal of World Diabetes Day is to spread awareness. The matter is in the following - the more people that are aware of the problem, the more people that can be saved.
Lots of people do not even understand they have the disease until much harm is already made. Besides, WDD also serves as a massive charity performance, collecting funds for both the research of diabetes and for the treatment of those with diabetes.
WDD sermonizes ideas and values like living a healthy lifestyle and getting yourself examined by doctors. In addition, it teaches methods to cope with the problems and ways to prevent the disease.
This campaign also notifies the ways to help even if you do not have the disease. Thanks to increasing awareness and educating people, diabetes can be prevented much more effectively.
Furthermore, it gains more worldwide attention, raising the importance of investing money and time into research.
Interesting Facts
 The theme for WDD changes yearly. In both 2007 and 2008, the theme was diabetes in children and adolescents. Previous themes include diabetes and obesity, human rights and diabetes, diabetes in the disadvantaged, diabetes in relation to specific organs and body parts, diabetes in old age and so on.
Some of the disturbing facts for this year’s theme are: that 200 children every day (70,000 yearly) gain type 1 diabetes.
It’s enlarging at a rate of 3% per year and a higher rate of 5% per year in preschoolers. There are over 440,000 children living with type 1 diabetes around the world.
Type2 diabetes is becoming gradually more prevalent in children, highlighting unhealthy lifestyles.
The symbol for WDD is a blue circle outline with white in the middle. The circle has several symbolic meanings, including global unity and health and lifecycles.
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