Traditional Medicine and Diabetes Care in Myanmar

According to the National Survey of Diabetes and Its Risk Factors conducted in 2014, Myanmar has a high burden of diabetes, as the prevalence of diabetes in adult population was 10.5% and the estimated number of adults with diabetes was 2.5 million. Diabetes care in the country is still far from satisfaction, as more than 50% of people with diabetes were unaware of their diagnosis, and access to the comprehensive diabetes care is generally available in the big cities only. Moreover, most people have to pay the cost of health care out of their own pocket, as the health insurance system and social security system are currently in their rudimentary stage. Because of these gaps in diabetes care and health financing system, a significant number of people resort to the traditional medicine, which is familiar to a significant proportion of the public and also being relatively more accessible with affordable cost. This article assesses the current situation of traditional medicine in diabetes care in Myanmar and attempts to make some suggestions to remedy the drawbacks of traditional medicine. It discusses ways to adopt an integrated approach to strengthen the practice of traditional medicine, in general, in the health care system of the country regarding the diabetes care.