More people in their twenties and thirties in England, particularly women, are being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, according to a major new population study. Researchers at Imperial College London found rates of diagnosis are rising rapidly among people under 40, while falling slightly in older groups (who still make up the largest proportion of diagnoses).
They found that body mass index (BMI) at diagnosis has been increasing more quickly in younger adults than in older adults. “We have known for a long time that obesity is linked to Type 2 diabetes, but what is new from this study is the scale of the change in younger adults. We think that the earlier onset of severe obesity in young people is increasing risk in early life and pulling down [diagnosis] age,” lead researcher Dr Shivani Misra says.
The study suggests the rise is particularly noticeable in white, Asian and Black women aged 20–29, and in white women aged 30–39. While ethnic minority groups are disproportionately affected with early-onset Type 2, Misra adds, “we now see that incidence is also increasing in white populations too… this public health challenge is broadening”.
Type 2 diabetes is a condition where there’s too much sugar in the bloodstream, caused by insulin resistance, or the body becoming resistant to the effect of insulin. Insulin is the hormone produced by the pancreas, which helps keep glucose (sugar) levels in the blood normal. It is different to Type 1 diabetes, which is often diagnosed in childhood.
