"Dramatic new evidence signals the unfolding of a diabetes epidemic in the United States. With obesity on the rise, we can expect the sharp increase in diabetes rates to continue. Unless these dangerous trends are halted, the impact on our nation's health and medical care costs will be overwhelming."

Jeffrey P. Koplan, MD, MPH
Former Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Source: http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/glance.htm

Diabetes mellitus is a disease in which glucose levels in the body are no longer properly regulated. People with diabetes experience blood sugar highs (hyperglycemia) and lows (hypoglycemia), which may lead to both chronic and acute health problems. Diabetes is the leading cause of adult blindness, end-stage renal disease, and lower-limb amputations. Moreover, diabetes patients are 2-4 times more likely to develop heart disease or stroke.

The Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization estimate that at least 171 million people worldwide have diabetes, and the number is expected to double by 2030. In the United States, an estimated 21 million people (or 7% of the population) have diabetes. More than 200,000 people die each year from a diabetes-related complication, making it the sixth-leading cause of death.

Many of these complications can be prevented through tight control of glucose levels. Two landmark studies on diabetes treatment were the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), completed by the National Institutes of Health in 1993 among 1,400 Type 1 diabetes patients, and the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) completed in 1998 with 5,000 Type 2 diabetes patients. These studies demonstrated that tight glucose control, involving various therapeutic interventions as well as three or more glucose measurements daily, substantially reduced morbidity and mortality among these diabetes patient populations.

Websites for Diabetes information:

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International
www.jdrf.org

American Diabetes Association
www.diabetes.org

National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases
www.niddk.nih.gov

Center for Diseases Control and Prevention
www.cdc.gov/diabetes

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