According to an official study, the number of Americans under the age of 20 with type 2 diabetes could increase by up to 700 percent by 2060.
Modeling funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that rates of type 1 diabetes, the most common form in children, could also increase by 65 percent over the next 40 years.
The team did not explain the dramatic increase, but one could be the growing burden of childhood obesity in the US. The number of obese children has tripled in the last three decades.
People with diabetes are at risk of numerous health problems, including heart disease, chronic kidney disease, nerve damage and other problems with feet, oral health, vision, hearing and mental health.
If an expected upward trend in new diabetes diagnoses continues, cases of type 2 diabetes in people under the age of 20 in the United States could increase by nearly 700 percent.
CDC Acting Assistant Secretary Dr. Debra Houry said, “This new research should be a wake-up call for all of us.
“It is critical that we focus our efforts on making sure that all Americans, especially our young people, are as healthy as possible.”
The researchers, from Germany and the US, found that if the prevalence rates from 2017 remained unchanged over the next few decades, the number of young people with both types of diabetes would increase by 12 percent from 213,000 to 239,000.
But if the incidence continues to rise at the rate it did between 2002 and 2017, up to 526,000 young people could develop diabetes by 2060.
Type 1 diabetes – which is hereditary and manifests early in life – is more common among young people in the US, but type 2 diabetes – which is associated with obesity and lack of exercise – has declined significantly over the past two decades in children, researchers said.
They concluded that if the trend remains constant and does not increase unexpectedly, Americans can expect the number of cases of type 2 diabetes to increase by nearly 70 percent by 2060 and the number of cases of type 1 diabetes by 3 percent. will increase.
Scientists praise ‘amazing’ results of diabetes drugs
Scientists are optimistic about an ‘amazing’ new drug, Tirzepatide, which works by mimicking hormones that both control blood sugar and suppress appetite, helping people shed pounds.
If the number of diagnoses accelerates, they estimate that by 2060 up to 220,000 young people will have type 2 diabetes – an increase of 673 percent.
The number of young people with type 1 diabetes could increase by up to 65 percent in the next 40 years.
Obesity and a poor diet high in sugar are two of the biggest risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
Figures show that one in five children under the age of 19 are obese and one in three are overweight.
The forecasters also believe that the presence of diabetes in people of childbearing age may be another important factor, as maternal diabetes increases the risk of diabetes in children.
The obesity crisis only got worse during the Covid pandemic. A 2021 study published in the journal BMJ reported that the percentage of obese children and adolescents rose to 22 percent between March and November 2020, compared to 19 percent before the pandemic.
Before the pandemic, healthy-weight children gained an average of 3.4 pounds per year. The annual rate rose to 5.4 pounds during the pandemic, according to the study.
For severely obese children, the projected annual weight gain increased from 8.8 pounds before the pandemic to 14.6 pounds in August 2020.
Dr. Christopher Holliday, director of the CDC’s Division of Diabetes Translation, said, “The rise in diabetes — especially among young people — is always a concern, but these numbers are alarming.
“This study’s surprising projections of the rise in type 2 diabetes demonstrate why it is essential to advance health equity and reduce the pervasive inequalities that already negatively affect people’s health.”
Nearly 1.5 million Americans live with type 1 diabetes, a disease caused by a lack of insulin, and approximately 64,000 new diagnoses are made each year.
It is a lifelong disease that affects approximately one in 400 children, adolescents and young adults under the age of 20.
Type 2 diabetes now affects many more people, most of whom are adults. Type 2 accounts for more than 90 percent of diabetes cases.
The model was published Thursday in the journal Diabetes Care.
Source link
Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
