Managing Your Diabetes Begins With Understanding Diabetes
Source: The American Diabetes Association
Keep these diabetes facts handy by printing out the ADA materials on the Cost of Diabetes, the Dangerous Toll of Diabetes and the Prevalence of Diabetes.
Diabetes Facts: What Is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a group of diseases marked by high levels of glucose resulting from defects in insulin production, insulin action or both.
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Diabetes Facts: Who Is Affected by Diabetes?
There are an estimated 20.8 million children and adults in the United States who have diabetes. That’s seven percent of the population. Of that 20.8 million people, approximately 14.6 million have been diagnosed.
At least 54 million people have pre-diabetes, or borderline diabetes.
If present trends continue, one in three Americans, and one in two minorities, born in 2000 will develop diabetes in his or her lifetime. Each day, approximately 4,110 people are diagnosed with diabetes. In 2005, 1.5 million new cases of diabetes were diagnosed in people 20 years of age or older.
A breakdown of diabetes prevalence by age and gender is listed here. Minority race/ethnic groups are affected more frequently. See below for more information.
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Diabetes Facts: What Are the Different Types of Diabetes?
There are four main kinds of diabetes: Type 1, Type 2, Gestational, and Pre-diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes Facts. Type 1 diabetes was previously called insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or juvenile-onset diabetes. Type 1 diabetes develops when the body’s immune system destroys pancreatic beta cells — the only cells in the body that make the hormone insulin — which regulate blood glucose.
To survive, people with type 1 diabetes must have insulin delivered by injection or a pump.
This type of diabetes accounts for five to 10 percent of all diagnosed cases. Type 1 diabetes may be associated with autoimmune, genetic or environmental causes. There is no known way to prevent type 1 diabetes.
Type 2 Diabetes Facts. Type 2 diabetes was previously called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes. Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90 to 95 percent of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. It usually begins as insulin resistance, a disorder in which the cells do not use insulin properly. As the need for insulin rises, the pancreas gradually loses its ability to produce it.
Type 2 diabetes is associated with older age, obesity, family history of diabetes, history of gestational diabetes, impaired glucose metabolism, physical inactivity and race/ethnicity.
African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, some Asian Americans and Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders are at particularly high risk for type 2 diabetes and its complications.
Clinically based reports and regional studies suggest that type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents, although still rare, is being diagnosed more frequently, particularly in American Indians, African Americans, and Hispanic/Latino Americans.
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Diabetes Facts about Gestational Diabetes. Gestational diabetes is a form of glucose intolerance diagnosed in some women during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes occurs more frequently among African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans and American Indians. It is also more common among obese women and women with a family history of diabetes.
During pregnancy, gestational diabetes requires treatment to normalize maternal blood glucose levels to avoid complications in the infant.
After pregnancy, five to 10 percent of women with gestational diabetes are found to have type 2 diabetes. Women who had gestational diabetes have a 20-to-50 percent chance of developing diabetes in the next five to 10 years. Seventy percent of women who had gestational diabetes will develop type 2 diabetes at some point during their lifetimes.
Pre-Diabetes Facts. Pre-diabetes is a condition that raises the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke. People with pre-diabetes have blood glucose levels higher than normal but not high enough to be classified as diabetes.
- People with pre-diabetes have impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). Some people have both IFG and IGT.
- IFG is a condition in which the fasting blood sugar level is 100 to 125 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) after an overnight fast. That level is higher than normal but not high enough to be classified as diabetes.
- IGT is a condition in which the blood sugar level is 140 to 199 mg/dL after a 2-hour oral glucose tolerance test. The level is higher than normal but not high enough to be classified as diabetes.
- In a cross-section sample of U.S. adults ages 40–74 tested from 1988 to 1994, 33.8 percent had IFG, 15.4 percent had IGT, and 40.1 percent had pre-diabetes (IGT or IFG or both). Applying these percentages to the U.S. population in 2000, an estimated 35 million adults aged 40–74 had IFG, 16 million had IGT, and 41 million had pre-diabetes (there is overlap between the IFG and IGT groups).
- Progression to diabetes among those with pre-diabetes is not inevitable. Studies have shown that people with pre-diabetes who lose weight and increase their physical activity can prevent or delay diabetes and even return their blood glucose levels to normal.
- More recent estimates from 1999-2002 indicate that, among US adults age 20 years and older, 26 percent had IFG, which was similar to the prevalence in 1988-1994 (25 percent). Applying this percentage to the U.S. population, 54 million American adults had IFG in 2002. Because IGT was not measured in 1999-2002, these data suggest that at least 54 million American adults had pre-diabetes in 2002.
- Two million adolescents age 12-19 (one in six overweight adolescents ages 12-19) have pre-diabetes.
Other. Other types of diabetes result from specific genetic conditions (such as maturity-onset diabetes of youth), surgery, drugs, malnutrition, infections and other illnesses. Such types of diabetes account for one to five percent of all diagnosed cases.
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Diabetes Facts: How Is Diabetes Treated?
The different types of diabetes are treated differently. Getting diabetes facts on different treatment options can help you control the disease.
People with type 1 diabetes must have insulin delivered by injection or a pump.
People with type 2 diabetes may not need to take insulin.
Many people with type 2 diabetes can control their blood glucose by following a healthy meal plan and exercise program, losing excess weight, and taking oral medication.
Among adults with diagnosed diabetes:
- 16 percent take insulin only
- 12 percent take both insulin and oral medication
- 57 percent take oral medication only
- 15 percent do not take either insulin or oral medication
Many people with diabetes also need to take medications to control their cholesterol and blood pressure.
Diabetes self-management education (DMSE) is an integral component of medical care.
Getting the right diabetes facts can help you better treat and manage the disease, no matter what type you have.
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