Experts have on the basis of Global Burden of Disease Study of the year 2019 – a global study with data from 204 countries – calculated the development of the number of type 2 diabetes cases, the disease-related complications and mortality among adolescents and young adults.
“From 1990 to 2019, a statistically clear increase in the number of new cases of type 2 diabetes and the rate of years of healthy life lost as a result was observed among adolescents and young adults,” wrote a team led by Chinese epidemiologist Jinchi Xie last week im „British Medical Journal“.
Western lifestyle from main cause
Type 2 diabetes develops over a longer period of time from initial insulin resistance. Eventually, the body’s own insulin production fails. Unlike type 1 diabetes, which involves an autoimmune reaction against the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas, type 2 diabetes does not require replacement of missing insulin right from the start.
In the past, this form of diabetes typically affected older people. Overweight and obesity with unhealthy diet and sedentary lifestyle are the main risk factors. However, due to the spread of the “Western lifestyle”, these risk factors are now a problem worldwide – and more and more among children, adolescents and young adults.
More cases, fewer healthy years
The effects of this have been documented by Chinese diabetes experts. “The age-standardized incidence rate per 100,000 inhabitants (new onset of type 2 diabetes within one year; note) rose from 106.34 cases in 1990 to 183.36 new cases (per 100,000 inhabitants between 15 and 39 years and year; note. ) …”, write.
This also translated into an almost halved increase in healthy years of life lost to type 2 diabetes and in mortality. The combination of both factors is considered in professional circles as DALY denotes what ultimately means the burden of disease. The number of years of healthy life lost due to the form of diabetes formerly known as “adult-onset diabetes” increased among 15- to 39-year-olds worldwide from 106.34 per 100,000 people in this age group to 149.61 (2019).
Global risk factor obesity
Only in diabetes-related mortality was there a small increase in adolescents and young adults from 0.74 per 100,000 people and year (1990) to 0.77 per 100,000 people and year (2019). While states with a low gross national product and highly developed countries sometimes show different trends, one risk factor apparently affects all societies worldwide: overweight or obesity.
For the year 2045, 783 million diabetics are expected worldwide. There could then also be more adolescents and young adults among them than in the past.