More than 100 million US adults are now living with diabetes or prediabetes, according to a new report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As of 2015, 30.3 million Americans—9.4% of the US population—have diabetes. Another 84.1 million have prediabetes, a condition that if not treated often leads to type 2 diabetes within 5 years. Diabetes was the seventh leading cause of death in the US in 2015. People with diabetes are at increased risk of serious health complications including premature death, vision loss, heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, and amputation of toes, feet, or legs. In 2015, an estimated 1.5 million new cases of diabetes were diagnosed among people ages 18 and older. Nearly one in 4 adults living with diabetes—7.2 million Americans—didn’t know they had the condition.
Only 11.6% of adults with prediabetes knew they had it. Rates of diagnosed diabetes increased with age; among adults ages 18 to 44 years, 4% had diabetes; among those ages 45 to 64 years, 17% had diabetes; among those ages 65 years and older, 25% had diabetes. Rates of diagnosed diabetes were higher among American Indians/Alaska Natives (15.1%), non-Hispanic blacks (12.7%), and Hispanics (12.1%), compared to Asians (8.0%) and non-Hispanic whites (7.4%). Diabetes’ prevalence varied significantly by education. Among US adults with less than a high school education, 12.6% had diabetes; among those with a high school education, 9.5% had diabetes; and among those with more than a high school education, 7.2% had diabetes. More men (36.6%) had prediabetes than women (29.3%). Rates were similar among women and men across racial/ethnic groups or educational levels. The southern and Appalachian areas of the US had the highest rates of diagnosed diabetes and of new diabetes cases.
(Source: CDC, July 18, 2017)
