Diabetes cases on the rise

For 37 years Shawn Feely has been living with diabetes.

He starts every morning checking his blood, then gives himself the first of five daily needles.

Shawn is just one of thousands in Manitoba living with a daily insulin drill, or dialysis, after the kidneys are ravaged by diabetes.

If things don’t change, the Canadian Diabetes Association say one in four people in Manitoba will soon have diabetes or the symptoms that lead to it.

The 48 per cent increase puts Manitoba on track to having the highest rate of diabetes among the Prairie provinces, and footing an even heftier health bill.

"Currently it’s around half a billion dollars and in 2020 if left unchecked will be approximately $639 million per year," explained Michael Cloutier, president and CEO of the Canadian Diabetes Association.

The Manitoba government declared the disease a major public health issue 15 years ago.

But cases of type 2 diabetes continue to rise, especially among seniors and aboriginals.

The province admits it has to work harder to offer programs to lower rates of obesity, which can lead to diabetes.

"We have to make sure that they have appropriate behaviour, appropriate food so that they don’t suffer the consequences," explained Healthy Living Minister Jim Rondeau.

Since Shawn has type 1 diabetes, prevention wasn’t possible, but said, "Prevention is a lot easier than maintenance and dealing with long term complications."