Passion for Politics – Pukaar News • News agency based in Leicester

Since retiring from Parliament, former MP Keith Vaz has dedicated himself to raising awareness of diabetes – the condition that took the life of his beloved mother, Merlyn.

He stepped down in 2019 after 32 years as MP for Leicester East, and is credited with being the longest-serving British MP in Asia.

With a passion for Leicester and politics, he achieved much during that time – taking on around 36,000 cases on behalf of the local community.

However, today his most important passion is Silver Star Diabetes, the charity he founded in 2007 in memory of his late mother. Merlyn died suddenly of complications from diabetes aged just 74.

“She was a local councilor – my inspiration. Widowed at a very young age, she raised three children, all of whom became lawyers, two of whom became MPs. So, for me, she was an incredible woman,” Mr. Vaz explained.

“When she was diagnosed with Diabetes, I was the Minister for Europe and, to be honest, I didn’t understand. I didn’t understand that it was quite wrong for her to take insulin and then eat chocolate quite happily. I knew nothing about diabetes as a disease. After she died, I thought to myself that I have to do something in her memory and to prevent other people from going down this path.”

Mr Vaz himself was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2000. It was a “huge wake-up call” – a shocking revelation that forced him to make huge changes to his lifestyle – getting more exercise and making healthier choices when it comes to food.

“In Leicester today there are 18,000 type 2 diabetics like me,” he tells Pukaar. “But there are another 30,000 who actually have diabetes and just don’t know about it. These are massive numbers that can change if people change their lifestyles.”

To help raise awareness of diabetes and highlight the importance of checking for the disease, the Silver Star charity runs mobile diabetes testing units in London, Leicester and abroad.

This summer, the charity’s sixth annual walk will take place in Leicester.

People are encouraged to get involved by joining the challenge, which will see Melton and Belgrave Road. Over 7,000 have been raised so far.

People can also donate money to the cause by visiting: https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/fundraising/diabetes-awareness-walk-1

“Exercise is so important when it comes to diabetes. Enjoy the food, but make sure you get the exercise, which means you don’t keep it in your system,” he said.

“Diabetes is the biggest challenge we face in the South Asian community because we love sweets – we love to eat and we love to eat late.

“It’s a silent killer that I feel very passionate about because of what happened to my mother – because of what I have now and because of what thousands and thousands of South Asians have too,” he added .

“Silver Star is the most important passion in my life now. I pursue it with vision and passion. It’s something I strongly believe in and want to dedicate the rest of my life to.”

Keith Vaz’s top four tips for beating diabetes:

1) “Stop eating at 9 p.m. It starts again at 9 or 10 0 the next day. Those 12 hours make a huge difference in how your body reacts.”

2) “Drink lots of water – at least 2 liters a day to flush out those kidneys.”

3) “Make sure you eat your vegetables. As a community, we don’t like to eat vegetables – we love our Birians and we love our curry, but it’s so important to eat your vegetables too!”

4) “Go. Finish your meal, get up and walk around the house. It will make a big difference. If you do that, you can eat whatever you want (within reason). Take the joy, but do the work, and you’ll feel much better.”

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