26th Feb 2020
Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament
Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar, MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC
Question No. 3483
To ask the Minister for Health (a) for each year in the past five years, how many diabetes cases have been diagnosed; and (b) when will the measures to reduce Singaporeans' sugar intake from sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), namely, mandatory front-of-pack labels and advertising prohibitions be implemented.
Answer
1. We estimate that 19,000 patients are diagnosed to have diabetes each year based on our administrative data.
2. We expect an increasing incidence of newly diagnosed diabetes in the short term, with better access to health screening, and as the population grow more aware of the importance of early detection and the potential complications of diabetes if left uncontrolled.
3. Diabetes is a chronic condition and it takes many years before complications present. Many of our War on Diabetes initiatives are aimed at reducing the risk of developing diabetes and delaying the development of complications in those who already have the disease. It will take years before we see both the overall incidence of diabetes and its complication rate decrease.
4. One key thrust of the War on Diabetes is to promote healthy lifestyle through a healthier diet. With this in mind, the Ministry announced in October last year that we will introduce mandatory nutrition labels and advertising prohibitions for less healthy pre-packaged sugar-sweetened beverages. Details of the two measures, including the implementation timeline, will be shared in the upcoming Committee of Supply debate.