Introduction

Key messages

  • 382 million people have diabetes; by 2035 this will rise to 592 million
  • The number of people with type 2 diabetes is increasing in every country
  • 80% of people with diabetes live in low- and middle-income countries
  • The greatest number of people with diabetes are between 40 and 59 years of age
  • 175 million people with diabetes are undiagnosed
  • Diabetes caused 5.1 million deaths in 2013; Every six seconds a person dies from diabetes
  • Diabetes caused at least USD 548 billion dollars in health expenditure in 2013 – 11% of total spending on adults
  • More than 79,000 children developed type 1 diabetes in 2013
  • More than 21 million live births were affected by diabetes during pregnancy in 2013
 

Diabetes in the regions

  • In Africa, 76% of deaths due to diabetes are in people under the age of 60
  • Europe has the highest prevalence of type 1 diabetes in children
  • In the Middle East and North Africa, 1 in 10 adults has diabetes
  • More was spent on healthcare for diabetes in North America and the Caribbean than in any other region
  • In South and Central America, the number of people with diabetes will increase by 60% by 2035
  • In South-East Asia, almost half of people with diabetes are undiagnosed
  • In the Western Pacific, 138 million adults have diabetes – the largest number of any region.