Kuwait – To support residents throughout the month of Ramadan and beyond in managing their diabetes, AstraZeneca Kuwait today announced a new public awareness campaign scheduled to kick off in the holy month, titled ‘Beyond Sugar’. The campaign is in partnership with the Kuwait Diabetes Society, Kuwait Nephrology Association, Kuwait Society of Endocrinology, and the Kuwait Medical Association and aims to increase awareness about the complications and management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM).

Diabetes affects millions of people each year across the world and approximately 22% of Kuwait’s population. Kuwait ranks among the top 20 countries worldwide in the prevalence of diabetes, and almost 50% of the country’s diabetic population remains undiagnosed. The campaign aims to educate the public on T2DM to ensure better health management and safe fasting in Ramadan, and empower patients to have a conversation with their doctors to ensure they are fully protected.

AstraZeneca Kuwait Country Director, Moustafa Abdelhady, said: “There is no doubt that non-communicable diseases like diabetes need to be controlled, particularly given the high rate of prevalence in Kuwait. One important way of doing this is through education, and this is the aim of our ‘Beyond Sugar’ campaign. We hope to bring attention to the fact that controlling blood sugar levels is not the only factor in managing T2DM. It is also the persistence of maintaining the goal of avoiding complications secondary to T2DM in the near and distant future. We hope to call considerable attention to the gravity of the disease and how to overcome the medical problems that come with it, and we cannot do this without the right partners in place. We’re very grateful to the Kuwait Diabetes Society, Kuwait Nephrology Association, Kuwait Society of Endocrinology and Kuwait Medical Association for their support and joining us on this important initiative to educate residents living with or without diabetes.”

Head of the Diabetes Unit at Mubarak Alkabeer Hospital and President of Kuwait Diabetes Society, Dr. Waleed Al Dahi said: “Kuwait Diabetes Society is keen to support patient awareness initiatives, and this year we’re pleased to partner with AstraZeneca to launch the Beyond Sugar initiative to ensure safe fasting in the holy month of Ramadan. Patient awareness and education are paramount, and with this initiative, we hope to combat any misconceptions about T2DM, including how the disease is not only linked to high sugar levels but can also impact vital organs such as the heart and kidneys.”

AstraZeneca’s awareness campaign will feature a series of short videos that will increase public awareness of how diabetes goes ‘Beyond Sugar’, including explaining what T2D is and how T2D makes people vulnerable to unseen and hidden complications of cardiovascular and renal disease. The information in the videos are presented by key healthcare professionals in Kuwait including, the Head of the Diabetes Unit at Mubarak Alkabeer Hospital and President of Kuwait Diabetes Society, Dr. Waleed Al Dahi, the Head of the Nephrology Unit at Al Amiri Hospital and Vice President of Kuwait Nephrology Association, Dr. Anas Alyousif, the Head of the Kuwaiti Society of Endocrinology and Consultant Endocrinology and Diabetologist at Jahra Hospital, Dr. Sameer Alshemari, and a Consultant Diabetologist from Mouwasat Hospital, Dr. Habib Steitieh.

‘Beyond Sugar’ is a global project that will pilot in Kuwait before its implementation across the GCC. Starting in April, the public campaign will run for four weeks during the holy month of Ramadan across the societies’ and AstraZeneca’s GCC social media accounts and AstraZeneca’s patient application, HealthGate.

AstraZeneca (AZ) is a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company specializing in medicines and pipelines for Diabetes, Cardiovascular, Renal, Oncology, Respiratory and Immunology therapy areas. In Kuwait, the company works hand-in-hand with the Ministry of Health to create a supportive ecosystem that improves patient experiences and outcomes, and collaborates with Kuwait’s Patients Helping Fund Society.

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