Around 8 million Bangladeshi people are suffering from diabetes, Bangladeshi State Minister for Health Zahid Malik revealed on Wednesday.

The minister revealed the figures at a press conference at his office in capital Dhaka marking the World Health Day which falls on Thursday.

The slogan for this year's World Health Day is "Make healthy choices every day, keep diabetes at bay."

Malik underscored the need for regular basis physical exercise, medics and body check-up to prevent diabetes.

Quoting the World Health Organization (WHO), Malik said 80 percent of the world's diabetes patients live in the lower and lower middle income countries.

Speaking at the press conference, WHO representative to Bangladesh N Paranietharam said a large majority of Bangladesh populations never checks for diabetes.

"Diabetes can be managed well if it's detected at an early stage," he said.