Global diabetes problem grows

Thursday April 7th, 2016

The number of people with diabetes globally has quadrupled in 25 years, according to figures published for World Health Day today.

Some 422 million adults - one in 12 of all adults - now have the disease, according to figures published in a World Health Organisation Global Report on diabetes and also in The Lancet.

WHO said people in countries across the world needed to "rethink" their daily lives.

In 1980, just 108 million adults suffered from the disease.

The report says that by 2014 more than a third of adults were overweight - and more than 10% were obese.

In 2012, diabetes was responsible for 1.5 million deaths, the report says.

WHO director general Dr Margaret Chan said: “If we are to make any headway in halting the rise in diabetes, we need to rethink our daily lives: to eat healthily, be physically active, and avoid excessive weight gain.

“Even in the poorest settings, governments must ensure that people are able to make these healthy choices and that health systems are able to diagnose and treat people with diabetes.”

The figures come from an analysis published in The Lancet drawn from 751 studies with a total of 4.4 million adults from around the world.

The report says the prevalence of diabetes has doubled among men in the last quarter century - from 4.3% to 9% - and increased by two thirds among women - from 5% to 7.9%. The researchers say diabetes rates are increasing fast in countries such as China and India.

Researcher Professor Majid Ezzati, of Imperial College, London, UK, said: "Obesity is the most important risk factor for type 2 diabetes and our attempts to control rising rates of obesity have so far not proved successful.

"Identifying people who are at high risk of diabetes should be a particular priority since the onset can be prevented or delayed through lifestyle changes, diet or medication."

Lancet 7 April 2016 [abstract]

Tags: Diabetes | Fitness | World Health

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