Diabetes: rising rates, disability and death.

A "thrifty gene" may put some groups at risk for type 2 diabetes. More than 20.8 million Americans—7 percent of the population—have diabetes. The number continues to grow, driven mostly by an upsurge in obesity. From 1994 to 2004, diagnosed diabetes rose at least 50 percent in 23 states. In addition, an estimated 54 million U.S. adults have prediabetes—an elevated blood sugar level that is not high enough to be classified as diabetes—which greatly raises their risk of developing type 2 diabetes and its complications. Of Americans with diabetes, about 6.2 million are unaware that they have the disease; thus, many fail to take steps to prevent complications. Diabetes is the sixth leading U.S. cause of death, and complications can be serious and expensive. Without diagnosis and treatment, Americans with diabetes are at risk for heart disease, stroke, amputations, blindness and kidney disease. Each year, 12,000 to 24,000 people with diabetes become blind. In 2002, 44,400 people with diabetes developed kidney failure, and about 82,000 had leg, foot or toe amputations. Preventive care for people with diabetes greatly reduces diabetes complications. Better blood sugar control reduces the risk for eye, kidney and nerve disease by 40 percent. Detection and laser treatment for eye disease reduces the blindness risk by up to 60 percent. Rising rates of type 2 diabetes among younger and younger Americans are a public health concern. One in three Americans born in 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime, which makes early diabetes prevention and control even more important. Without it, children who develop diabetes may face complications by age 35 or 40 instead of at age 60 or 65.