Cases of type 2 diabetes increase at alarming rate in U.S.

January 27, 2011|from KY3 News | lrose@ky3.com

Because of excessive weight and other factors, nearly one in three adults in the United States is at risk. If you're one of the millions of Americans who is overweight and doesn't exercise, you may have diabetes and not even know it until your condition is advanced.

"Up to 20 to 25 percent who are newly diagnosed with diabetes already have complications," said Dr. Susan Spratt of the Duke University Health System.

The Centers for Disease Control released new statistics that show nearly 26 million Americans have type 2 diabetes. That's a jump of about 3 million from just three years ago.

More than a third of U.S. adults have high blood glucose levels that are just below the threshold to be considered full-blown diabetes.

"We know that the diabetes trend has been increasing over the past two decades," said Spratt.

While it's true more people are developing diabetes, the statistical rise can also be attributed to better management of the disease. More people are living longer with it. Since the previous estimate, doctors are now using improved screening methods, which is also leading to a rise in diagnoses.

"It's really important to be screened for diabetes, especially if you're overweight, have a family history or are in a group or population that has a high risk for diabetes," said Spratt.

African-Americans and other ethnic minority groups have higher rates of diabetes but prevention is key for everyone.

"If you just change your lifestyle so that you're just walking 30 minutes a day, five days a week, you can reduce your risk of developing diabetes dramatically," said Spratt.

Exercise, cutting your weight by 10 percent, and adding more fruits and vegetables to your diet can also help, and could potentially reverse this growing trend. Older Americans are also at a higher risk.

|

|

|