Despite years of awareness and increased spending on diabetes treatment and prevention, the risk of diabetes continues to rise in the United States. Currently, about 21 million Americans have diabetes. This represents 7% of the population. Almost one-third of these, over 6 million people, do not even know that they have the disease. Even more alarming, about 54 million people had pre-diabetes (impaired fasting glucose) in 2002, representing 18% of the population. On average, Americans had pre-diabetes for 10 years before being diagnosed with the diabetes. Diabetes could more than double in this country unless we can change this trend. The risk of diabetes increases with age. About 10% of all adults over age 20 in the U.S. have diabetes, but 21% of Americans over age 60 have diabetes. Certain ethic groups are also at greater risk, non-Hispanic blacks have 1.8 times, Mexican Americans 1.7 times, and American Indians 2.2 times the risk of developing diabetes compared to non-Hispanic whites.

Diabetes leads to serious health consequences. Diabetes increases the risk of death from heart disease and stroke by 2 to 4 times. Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness among adults between 20 and 74 years old. Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure. In 2002, over 150,000 people in the U.S. were living on chronic dialysis or kidney transplant due to end-stage kidney disease due to diabetes. Between 60 and 70% of people with diabetes have some form of nervous system damage. Severe forms of diabetic nerve damage are a major contributor to lower-extremity amputations. In 2002, about 82,000 non-traumatic lower-limb amputations were performed in people with diabetes. Direct medical costs for treatment of diabetes in 2002 were estimated at $92 million. Diabetes accounted for another $40 million in indirect costs such as lost work, disability and premature death. These amounts could almost triple in 10 years if we do not reverse these trends.

Key to reducing complications from diabetes are blood glucose control, blood pressure control, cholesterol level control, and preventative care practices for eyes, kidneys, and feet. Weight control and exercise remain keys to preventing the onset of diabetes and reducing the risk of complications of the disease.

You can determine your risk of diabetes by taking the American Diabetes Association diabetes risk screening test at http://www.diabetes.org/risk-test.jsp. If you are at high risk for developing diabetes, talk to your doctor and begin a weight and exercise program to help reduce your risk. You can reduce your risk by losing weight if you are overweight, by staying active at least 5 days of the week, and by eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and low in fats. Various studies have demonstrated risk reduction between 30% and 60% using diet, exercise and lifestyle modification. Start living healthy today and avoid getting diabetes later in life!

References: http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/statistics/.

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