The third edition of Beat Diabetes Walkathon marked the culmination of a year-long diabetes awareness drives and activities led by the Landmark Group.

Around 6000 people dressed in blue joined the third Beat Diabetes Walkathon, organised recently by the retail and hospitality conglomerate, Landmark Group. The walk was flagged off from Centrepoint, Ruwi with an aim to spread awareness and beat diabetes in the Sultanate.

The 2012 edition of Walkathon in Oman was organised under the patronage of the Ministry of Health and Oman Diabetic Association and marked the culmination of a year-long timeline of diabetes awareness drives and activities led by the Landmark Group.

Commenting on the occasion Clive Freeman, COO, Landmark Group Oman said, “Our aim is to spread awareness about diabetes and to give people enough knowledge on the condition to help them make informed choices on eating and living healthy and also encourage people to regularly test their blood glucose level.”

Major threat
The number of diabetic patients is escalating day by day all over the world and in the Sultanate the number of Omanis living with diabetes and registered at MoH institutions surpassed 170,000. The diabetes prevalence among adults is currently estimated at 12.3 per cent which slightly increased from the earlier reported figure in 2000. On the other hand, Diabetes continues to bleed the budgets of all health care systems threatening sustainability if preventive measures are not implemented.

Dr Noor Al- Busaidi, president of Oman Diabetes Association was present at the occasion and was glad to be a part of the walk. “I’m extremely grateful to everyone who has gathered here for a social cause,” said Dr Noor. “Diabetes has become a very serious concern across the globe and especially in Sultanate, where the incidence of diabetes is extremely high. This is a result of a lot of factors put together – unhealthy and sedentary lifestyle, poor eating habits, lack of exercise. With the support of the masses we can spread awareness and beat diabetes and live a healthy life.”

Ali Mallalah Al Lawati said, “We hope that this initiative will usher in a positive change in people’s mindset about diabetes. We can make a start from this moment and reflect upon our lifestyles and commit ourselves towards making a change to lead a healthier life. Our combined efforts will spread the word and we will ‘Beat Diabetes’ together.

The walkathon was preceded by a month long awareness campaign led by Landmark Group where over 1000 free blood glucose tests were done all over Oman. The campaign was actively supported by Al Raffa Hospital and Johnson & Johnson – Lifescan. Nissan from Suhail Bhawan Automobiles extended their support during the registration drive for the walkathon across the Capital area. TRA, Oman Oil Company and Renaissance Services supported blood testing camps which was the part of the campaign.

Landmark Group encourages people to regularly monitor their blood glucose levels to ensure early detection and better management of diabetes. Through its on-going campaigns such as ‘Beat Diabetes, Eat Healthy’ and ‘Beat Diabetes, Get Active’ the Group actively seeks opportunities to raise awareness about the condition.