About Diabetes When you are diagnosed with any disease, it can be a difficult time. Diabetes is no exception. The good news is that diabetes is a well-understood condition, with treatments that are effective. If you understand diabetes and successfully manage it, you should be able to continue to live a normal life.

Diabetes Facts

Diabetes facts and figures in the UK

Diabetes mellitus is on the increase globally. This is also the case in the UK as illustrated by the statistics. Since 1996 the number of people diagnosed with diabetes has increased from 1.4 million to 2.6 million. It is estimated that over four million people will have diabetes by 2025. Most of these cases will be Type 2 diabetes, because of the ageing population and rapidly rising numbers of overweight and obese people; 1 person is diagnosed every 3 minutes with type 2 diabetes. The figures are alarming and confirm that diabetes is one of the biggest health challenges facing the UK today.

The incidence of diabetes is about 3.9% of the UK population. Of these 80 - 90% have type 2 diabetes with the rest being type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is characterized by hyperglycaemia due to the auto-immune destruction of the beta-cells in the pancreas. It is more commonly diagnosed in people under the age of 30. It was traditionally called juvenile-onset or insulin-dependent diabetes though both terms are rarely used now. The patients start experiencing the symptoms of hyperglycaemia very quickly. Type 2 diabetes is a progressive disease and its aetiology is defined by beta-cell dysfunction and insulin resistance. Type 2 diabetes may also be known as adult or maturity-onset or non-insulin dependent diabetes, terms now discouraged from being used. The symptoms may be present for an extended period before treatment is sought and some people with type 2 diabetes may not even have symptoms. For both conditions the goals are the same and this includes improved quality of life, blood glucose levels as near normal as possible and reduced risk of complications. Diabetes may occur during pregnancy and this is called gestational diabetes which typically vanishes when the baby is born. Specialist treatment and monitoring is required during gestational diabetes.

Diabetes takes up 9% per cent of the NHS budget - that is ÃÃÃÃã5.2 billion per year. In the UK, these diabetes facts and figures can help identify strategies to influence diabetes care delivery. The type 2 diabetes epidemic is driven by obesity and physical inactivity and is potentially preventable by public health measures in communities which are deemed high risk. Studies have shown that lifestyle modification with diet and exercise can prevent the progression of impaired glucose tolerance to overt type 2 diabetes. Historically diabetes has been a disease seen in the middle aged and elderly population but is now a problem among adolescents and children. These diabetes facts and figures are more prevalent in the USA and Japan but are fast becoming a reality in the UK. If this growing health crisis is to be curbed with a reduction in the number of people dying from diabetes and its complications, increased awareness of the risks, wholesale changes in lifestyle, improved self-management among people with diabetes and improved access to integrated diabetes care services must be central to any public health initiative.

Written by a Diabetes Specialist Nurse