Diabetes diagnoses in Black Country and Staffordshire increases by more than 5,000 in year
The number of people diagnosed with diabetes in the Black Country and Staffordshire has increased by more than 5,000 since last year – reaching almost 175,000, new figures have revealed.
The figure has risen from 168,470 to 174,084, analysis from Diabetes UK shows.
With excessive weight being linked to type two diabetes, Diabetes UK is calling on the Government to tackle childhood obesity.
In the UK 3.9 million people are currently living with a diagnosis of diabetes, and 90 per cent of those with type two.
In addition, there are almost a million more people living with type two diabetes, who do not know they have it because they have not been diagnosed yet, bringing the total number up to more than 4.8 million.
Diabetes UK has warned that the number, including the undiagnosed population, could rise to 5.3 million by 2025.
While not every case of type two diabetes is associated with excessive weight, it is the single greatest risk factor, responsible for 80 to 85 per cent of someone’s risk of developing the condition.
Age, family history, and ethnicity can also contribute to someone’s risk, with people of African-Caribbean, Black African or South Asian descent two to four times more likely to develop type two diabetes than white people.
Peter Shorrick, Midlands and East Regional Head at Diabetes UK, said: “Type 2 diabetes is an urgent public health crisis, and solving it depends on decisive action that’s led by government, supported by industry and delivered across our society.
"Preventing type 2 diabetes, and the development of devastating complications for those living with the condition has to be a public health priority.”
People with type two diabetes are 50 per cent more likely to die prematurely than those without diabetes.
A common complication of diabetes that can lead to early death is heart disease.
