DIABETES
DIABETES - CLINICAL MANIFESTATIONS
According to IDF’s (International Diabetes Federation) diabetes is a chronic condition that occurs when the pancreas can no longer make insulin, or the body cannot effectively use insulin. Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas that acts like a key to let glucose from the food we eat pass from the bloodstream into the cells in the body to produce energy. The body breaks down all carbohydrate foods into glucose in the blood, and insulin helps glucose move into the cells. When the body cannot produce or use insulin effectively, this leads to high blood glucose levels, called hyperglycaemia. Over the long-term high glucose levels are associated with micro- and macrovascular damages to the body and failure of various organs and tissues (heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys and nerves).
Many people have blood sugar levels above the normal range, but not high enough to be diagnosed as having diabetes. This is known as non-diabetic hyperglycaemia, or pre-diabetes. People with non-diabetic hyperglycaemia are at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes, but the risk can be reduced through lifestyle changes.
Diagnostic delay is estimated in around 10 years, means that time laps between onset and diagnosis is around 10 years: a silent progression that leads to the chronic disease. A person starts to be affected (without clear symptoms) by the disorder years before being diagnosed.
Diabetes is considered the silent pandemic of XXI century; together with obesity, called the twin pandemic “diabesity”. The good news: Losing as little as 5% to 10% of your overall body weight can greatly improve Type 2 diabetes; The first treatment goal for diabesity is to get to and maintain a healthy weight along with eating a low-carb and low-sugar diet
DIABETES - GLOBAL IMPACT
Source: IDF (Diabetes Atlas 10th edition, 2021)
- 537 million adults (20-79 years) are living with diabetes – 1 in 10. This number is predicted to rise to 643 million by 2030 and 783 million by 2045. 45% are undiagnosed.
Over 3 in 4 adults with diabetes live in low- and middle-income countries.
Diabetes is responsible for 6.7 million deaths in 2021 – 1 every 5 seconds.
Diabetes caused at least USD 966 billion dollars in health expenditure – a 316% increase over the last 15 years. 11.5 % of global health expenditure spent on diabetes
- Diabetes caused at least USD 966 billion dollars in health expenditure – a 316% increase over the last 15 years. 11.5 % of global health expenditure spent on diabetes
- 21 million live births (1 in 6) affected by hyperglicaemia in pregnancy, 80% have mothers with GDM (gestational DM)
- 240 million adults (20-79 years) are undiagnosed (included in total figure of 537 million)
- 240 million adults (20-79 years) are undiagnosed (included in total figure of 537 million)
- 1 in 9 adults (20-79 years) has Impaired Glucose Tolerance (IGT) 541 million adults have Impaired Glucose Tolerance (IGT), which places them at high risk of type 2 diabetes
- 1 in 18 adults (20-79 years) has Impaired Fasting Glucose (IFG) 319 million adults have Impaired Fasting Glucose (IFG), which places them at high risk of type 2 diabetes.
Incidence is the number of new cases of a disease or condition among a defined group of people during a specified time period. For example, the number of new cases of type 1 diabetes in children and adolescents living in a given country in one year.
Prevalence is the proportion or number of individuals in a population that already has a disease or condition at a particular time (a point in time or over a period of time).
The increasing prevalence of type 2 diabetes is associated with higher levels of urbanisation, ageing populations and unhealthy habits, including insufficient physical activity and higher consumption of unhealthy foods. The causes of the increased incidence of type 1 diabetes are not yet clear.
Diabetes-related health expenditure is now estimated to account for 11.5% of the total global healthcare budget. As 784 million people (1 in 8) are projected to have diabetes by 2045, it is essential that more efforts are made to implement type 2 diabetes prevention plans and to introduce more cost-effective ways to manage the different types of diabetes.
