Veteran lawyer and politician Paul Muite has refuted speculation that he is suffering from cancer.
Muite’s picture showing his reduced body frame has gone viral on social media, with an online user claiming that the former Kabete Member of Parliament is recuperating after undergoing cancer treatment.
Taking to his Twitter page on Friday, July 15, the Safina Party leader said doctors had advised him to reduce weight to manage his blood sugar levels within a safe range.
“Reports on social media that I am sick with cancer are not true,” the 77-year-old said on the micro-blogging site.
“Given my age, I have had to shed off weight on purpose to keep my [blood] sugar levels where they should be,” he said.
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He says besides observing a healthy diet, he keeps fit by jogging regularly.
“I enjoyed one-and-a-half hours of jogging in the Ngong Forest this morning (Friday),” he said on his Twitter page that has a following of 115,900 users.
Muite confirmed to The Standard on phone that he personally wrote the posts on his Twitter page, which is yet to get the blue verification badge.
High blood sugar levels increase the chances of one suffering stroke, heart attack or heart disease, Science shows.
“When there is more glucose (sugar) in the bloodstream than what the body needs to meet energy demands, increased insulin levels signal to the liver and muscles to store glucose in chains of glycogen. Once the liver and muscles are filled to the brim with glycogen, the excess glucose is turned into fat (triglycerides) and sent out in the blood to be stored in the fat cells around the body,” says health platform levelshealth.com.
It is the excess fats (triglycerides) that could result in stroke, heart attack or heart disease.
“High triglycerides may contribute to hardening of the arteries or thickening of the artery walls (arteriosclerosis) – which increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and heart disease,” says health platform mayoclinic.org.
Paul Muite served as Kabete MP between 1992 and 2007.
