Prediabetes Rates Soar in England

Prediabetes, as described by the American Diabetes Association, is a precursor to type 2 diabetes. According to a new report, prediabetes rates in England tripled from 2003 to 2011.

“Prediabetes is a high-risk state for developing diabetes and associated complications,” explained the study’s authors. “The purpose of this paper was to report trends in prevalence of prediabetes for individuals aged 16 and older in England without previously diagnosed diabetes.”

After culling data from the Health Survey for England, the researchers found that, in 2003, 11.6% of respondents had prediabetes. By 2011, that rate had increased to 35.3%; among overweight individuals aged 40 and older, 51% had the disease. In 2003 and 2006, individuals with lower socioeconomic status had higher rates of prediabetes, but that relationship lost significance in 2009 and 2011. Those considered “second most socioeconomically deprived” appeared to be at an elevated risk.

“In the absence of concerted and effective efforts to reduce risk, the number of people with diabetes is likely to increase steeply in coming years,” the authors concluded.

The report can be found in British Medical Journal Open (2014; doi:10.1136/ bmjopen-2014-005002).