Between 1990 and 2022, the number of individuals over 18 years old with diabetes type 1 or 2 has increased drastically. The increase is seen among both women and men. In 2022, according to the international survey, 828 million people had diabetes. The largest increase is likely among adults who have developed diabetes type 2.
At the same time, nearly 60 percent of those over 30 years old lack adequate treatment for their disease, according to the comprehensive survey conducted in collaboration with, among others, WHO.
Lifestyle likely the culprit
Low- and middle-income countries have the largest increase. In Pakistan, for example, the number of affected individuals has gone from 9 to nearly 31 percent during the period.
The increase in the most affected countries is certainly largely due to changed living habits with increased calorie intake and unhealthy food choices, leading to overweight, which is a strong risk factor. Even reduced physical activity likely contributes, says Jan Eriksson, chief physician and professor of clinical diabetes research at Uppsala University, who has read the study.
In several Western European countries, such as Sweden, Denmark, and France, no or small increases are seen. Japan and Canada are also doing well.
But it is in low-income countries that treatment does not reach patients, and in some of them, 90 percent do not have access to medication, according to the study, which was published in the journal Lancet. In Western Europe, for example, up to 86 percent have treatment.
More live longer
Among high-income countries, the largest increase is seen in the USA, where 11 percent of women and 14 percent of men had diabetes in 2022.
In Sweden, the increase in new cases of type 2 diabetes has slowed down, but continues for type 1.
However, more people are living with both type 2 and type 1 diabetes, but this is largely due to the fact that treatments that prevent complications have improved, and therefore, people live longer with their diabetes – it's positive, says Jan Eriksson.
The researchers have used data from 175 countries, and the study is, according to them, the most comprehensive mapping of the prevalence of diabetes that has been made.
About 5 percent of Sweden's population has diabetes, of which about 90 percent have type 2 diabetes.
In type 2 diabetes, the ability to produce insulin is not completely gone, but the amount of insulin is insufficient. This is mainly due to:
The body's inability to produce insulin in sufficient amounts when blood sugar levels rise after, for example, a meal.
The body's tissues' ability to utilize the existing insulin is impaired, which means that a larger amount of insulin is needed to "open" the cell so that it can receive sugar from the blood.
Being overweight and obese increases the risk of the body's cells losing their sensitivity to insulin.
In type 1 diabetes, the body's own immune system has attacked the cells in the pancreas that produce the hormone insulin and destroyed them, so they can no longer produce insulin. Type 1 diabetes is treated with insulin for life.
Type 1 diabetes usually develops when you are a child or teenager, but adults can also get the disease.
Source: 1177, Swedish Diabetes Association
