Unlocking the Path to Optimal Health: A Guide to Managing and Reducing Diabetes in Indonesia

Diabetes is a chronic disease that affects the way the body processes blood sugar, and it can lead to serious complications if not managed properly. Ideally, it would be managed by social policies made by the government or more specifically, the minister of health. The social determinants of health (SDOH) are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age. These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power, and resources at global, national, and local levels. The social determinants of health are mostly responsible for health inequities—the unfair and avoidable differences in health status seen within and between countries (WHO, n.d). With diabetes, understanding and mitigating the impact of SDOH are priorities due to disease prevalence, economic costs, and disproportionate population burden (Hill-Briggs, 2021). With health policies in place, the cases of diabetes would evidently decrease if they are done right.

Since Indonesia is still a mostly developing country the use of specialized medical technologies and health services such as dialysis is hard to come by. In hopes of preventing diabetes, it is important to tackle the most obvious social determinants of health that affect my community which are income and education. This can be seen through the reason of death throughout the individual population of Indonesia, as stated by a research bureau, diabetes is one of the highest causes of death (Riskesdas, 2018) and according to WHO, lifestyle changes are the best way to prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes (WHO, n.d). A change of lifestyle must be fuelled by the correct education. Aside from that, being able to fulfil a certain lifestyle must come with the monetary capability of executing such lifestyle. Based on the state of the socio-economic status of Indonesia, there are 3 policy interventions that could help reduce and prevent diabetes.

• · Health grading labels for convince store beverages and snacks

Health grading labels for convenience store beverages and snacks have the potential to make a significant impact on public health by promoting healthier choices and increasing awareness of the nutritional value of these products hence boosting education towards general health. Manufactures that produce healthy beverages and snacks could have a monetary incentive that could aid the companies.

• · Build an environment with a well-integrated transport system

A well-integrated transport system can promote physical activity, improve access to healthy food options, reduce air pollution and stress, and increase social interaction, all of which can help prevent diabetes and improve overall health outcomes. A well-integrated transportation system would increase the accessibility to most things, including healthcare.

• · Better the minimum wage laws, and formal education on health

In combination, minimum wage and better education on diabetes can create a synergistic effect in preventing and managing diabetes. By increasing wages, individuals may have more resources to invest in their health, including healthier food options, physical activity opportunities, and healthcare services. When coupled with education on diabetes prevention and management, individuals can make informed decisions about how to use these resources to reduce their risk of developing diabetes and manage their condition.

The policy approach to these interventions would identify as public health policies since Indonesia is a country with a large population. Recently there is has been a policy already made which is the government funded subsidised health care where every Indonesian citizen is given free healthcare with a monthly instalment. Those who couldn’t afford to pay a monthly instalment would not have the access to free healthcare hence it would be most effective to make changes towards the overall health of the community to prevent diabetes.

The ability of developing countries to make policies about health has to start from the ground up, by focusing on fundamentals such as economy, infrastructure and education. With building a well-integrated transportation system, bettering the minimum wage and formal education, and raising awareness towards the community, there should be a reduced rate of diabetes.