Diabetes could lead to more severe COVID-19 illness

MANILA, Philippines — When people with diabetes get infected with COVID-19, they are more likely to have the severe form of the illness, the Philippine Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism (PSEDM) warned on Friday.

In an interview on OneNews’ “The Chiefs,” PSEDM president Michael Villa said those with diabetes are more prone to critical infection of COVID-19.

“Patients who have diabetes, once they are infected with COVID-19, they have worse symptoms –– their fever is higher, their stay in the hospital is longer and they develop complications,” Villa said.

He added in some hospitals, 20 to 40 percent of admitted COVID-19 patients are diabetics.

“So we see them as a risk factor for worsening signs and symptoms and critical illness,” he maintained.

According to Villa, there has been an increase in diabetes cases in the country over the past two decades, from two or three million to eight million.

He expressed concerns that the COVID-19 pandemic, now on its second year, may contribute to the increase in diabetes due to sedentary lifestyle and poor eating habits.

“We encourage both the public and private sector to band together and really focus on trying to prevent the increase and rise of this, I would say, a deadly disease,” he said.

Villa also cautioned diabetes patients against taking herbal medicines or plants that are supposedly for diabetes without consulting their doctors.

He said some herbal medications contradict regular medicines that a diabetic patient is taking.

“As doctors, we have our responsibility to give them medicines that have been studied. We know the effect of the number of dosage, the milligrams and definitely the side effect of those medications,” he said.