Diabetes Rates Expected to Soar

According to the American Diabetes Association, 25.8 million people in the United States have diabetes—8.3% of the total population. By 2025, says a study in Population Health Management (2012; 15, 1–7), that number will be dwarfed.

Incorporating projections from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Research Triangle Institute, The Diabetes 2025 Model—generated by the Institute for Alternative Futures (IAF)—anticipates that 53.1 million people will have diabetes by 2025. If this projection proves accurate, it will signify a 64% increase between 2010 and 2025, and an estimated societal cost of $514 billion a year.
The researchers also broke down diabetes data for seniors and minorities:

• Seniors: 17,191,000
• African Americans: 9,517,000
• Hispanic Americans: 11,452,000
• Asian Americans: 2,804,000
• Native Americans: 1,000,000

“Diabetes is a serious health issue in America, with every indication of a dramatic increase in prevalence, complications, and financial burden on society over the next 15 years,” the study authors warned. “Reversing this ‘epidemic’ will require major lifestyle changes and remaking our health care delivery system into one focused on proactive prevention and continuous access to coordinated, evidence-based management of chronic diseases.”