Research in the Journal of the American Medical Association has suggested that over than 60% of all cases of diabetes are likely to occur in Asia, where those developing the disease tend to be younger and less likely to be overweight than those in the West.
In 2007, more than 110 million individuals in Asia had diabetes, with the burden falling disproportionately on the young and middle-aged. There are a number of factors leading to this, identified by the JAMA report, which analysed hundreds of articles, data and studies published between January 1980 and March 2009 (excluding studies on type 1 diabetes):
- Rates of overweight/obesity are rising fast, driven by economic development, the nutrition transition and increasingly sedentary lifestyles.
- Normal body weight with increased abdominal adiposity is common in Asian populations, which leads to greater risk of diabetes.
- Increased risk of gestational diabetes, combined with exposure to poor nutrition before birth and over-nutrition in later life in some populations, may also contribute to ‘diabetes begetting diabetes’.
Diabetes cases globally are predicted to rise by a third by 2025, and in particular:
- India: 40 million to nearly 70 million;
- China 39 million to 59 million;
- Bangladesh 3.8 million to 7.4 million.
Sources: BBC News Online and JAMA 301(20), 27 May 2009.