UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has pledged to fight for the needs and well-being of diabetes patients on the occasion of World Diabetes Day.
In his message for the day observed on Nov. 14, Guterres said that more than 420 million people suffer from diabetes worldwide, although it is a treatable and often preventable disease largely driven by unhealthy diets, physical inactivity and poor access to health services and medicine.
He noted the disease undermines educational and employment aspirations for many people, affecting communities and forcing families into economic hardship through high medical expenses.
"Early detection and access to health-care services are crucial to prevention and treatment, including through achieving universal health coverage by 2030," he stressed, referring to a major goal set in the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
"I voice my support for all individuals around the world living with diabetes and reaffirm the commitment of the United Nations to fight for their needs and well-being on our path towards health for all," he said.
World Diabetes Day was launched in 1991 by the International Diabetes Federation and the World Health Organization. It is marked on every Nov. 14, the birthday of Frederick Banting, who co-discovered insulin and its therapeutic potential.
