1.3 billion may be living with diabetes by 2050

New Delhi, June 23

Population living with diabetes worldwide, currently half a billion, is projected to double to 1.3 billion in the next 30 years with every country expected to see an increase, according to a new analysis published in The Lancet.

“The rapid rate at which diabetes is growing is not only alarming but also challenging for every health system in the world, especially given how the disease also increases the risk for ischemic heart disease and stroke,” said Liane Ong, lead author and Lead Research Scientist at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine, US.

Almost all global cases, 96 per cent, are type 2 diabetes (T2D), the researchers said, who used the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 study and examined the prevalence, morbidity and mortality of diabetes for 204 countries and territories by age and sex between 1990 and 2021 and forecasted diabetes prevalence to 2050.

The latest and most comprehensive calculations showed the current global prevalence rate to be 6.1 per cent, making diabetes one of the top 10 leading causes of death and disability, the analysis said.

At the regional level, the study found the rate to be the highest in North Africa and West Asia at 9.3 per cent, which is expected to rise to 16.8 per cent by 2050 and to 11.3 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean.