Annette Gonsalves, MD

The Big Picture

• More than 30 million people in the United States have diabetes, and 1 in 4 of them don’t know they have it.

• More than 84 million US adults—over a third—have prediabetes, and 90% of them don’t know they have it.

• Diabetes is the 7th leading cause of death in the United States (and may be underreported).

• Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90% to 95% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes; type 1 diabetesaccounts for about 5%.

• In the last 20 years, the number of adults diagnosed with diabetes has more than tripled as the American population has aged and become more overweight or obese.

Risk

• You’re at risk for developing prediabetes or type 2 diabetes if you:

  • Are overweight

  • Are age 45 or older

  • Have a parent, brother, or sister with type 2 diabetes

  • Are physically active less than 3 times a week

  • Have ever had gestational diabetes (diabetes while pregnant) or given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds

• African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians/Alaska Natives, Pacific Islanders, and some Asian Americans are at higher risk for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.

• American Indians/Alaska Natives are twice as likely as whites to have diabetes.

• During their lifetime, half of all Hispanic men and women and non-Hispanic black women are predicted to develop diabetes.

• Type 1 diabetes is thought to be caused by an immune reaction (the body attacks itself by mistake). Known risk factors for type 1 diabetes include:

  • Family history (having a parent, brother, sister with type 1 diabetes)

  • Age (it’s more likely to develop in children, teens, and young adults)

• In the United States, whites are more likely to develop type 1 diabetes than African Americans and Hispanic/Latino Americans.

• You’re at risk for developing gestational diabetes (diabetes while pregnant) if you:

  • Had gestational diabetes during a previous pregnancy

  • Have given birth to a baby who weighed more than 9 pounds

  • Are overweight

  • Are more than 25 years old

  • Have a family history of type 2 diabetes

  • Have polycystic ovary syndrome

  • Are African American, Hispanic/Latino American, American Indian/Alaska Native, or Pacific Islander

• Gestational diabetes usually goes away after your baby is born but increases your risk for type 2 diabetes later in life.

• Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes are more likely to have obesity as children or teens, and are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life too.

Complications

• People with diabetes are twice as likely to have heart disease or a stroke as people without diabetes—and at an earlier age.

• Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations, and adult-onset blindness.

• Smokers are 30–40% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than nonsmokers.

• People with diabetes who smoke are more likely to develop serious related health problems, including heart and kidney disease.

• In about 2 out of 3 American Indians/Alaska Natives with kidney failure, diabetes is the cause.

Cost

• Medical costs and lost work and wages for people with diagnosed diabetes total $245 billion yearly.

• Medical costs for people with diabetes are twice as high as for people who don’t have diabetes.