More than 29 million Americans have diabetes (either Type 1 or Type 2), and it’s the seventh-leading cause of death in the U.S., as well as a major player in two other leading killers, heart disease and stroke.
That information may be familiar to you, but here are 10 other facts about diabetes you might not know, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Diabetes Association:
- About a third of those 29 million diabetics don’t know they have the disease.
- Type 2 diabetes ““ the type in which the body makes insulin, but can’t use it effectively to regulate blood glucose levels ““ often has no symptoms.
- Only about five percent of people with diabetes have Type 1 ““ the type in which the body doesn’t make insulin.
- If you’re at risk for Type 2 diabetes, moderate weight loss (10 to 15 pounds, for most people) and regular physical activity (30 minutes of brisk walking a day, five days a week) can prevent it.
- Meal plans for people with diabetes aren’t that different from recommended healthy meal plans for people who don’t have the disease.
- Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness for working-age adults.
- People with diabetes are twice as likely to develop heart disease as people without it.
- Good diabetes control can prevent complications from the disease ““ heart attack and stroke, blindness, amputations, etc. ““ or prevent those complications from getting worse.
- Weight-loss surgery can reduce the symptoms of diabetes ““ and in some cases, reverse the disease completely ““ in obese people.
- Diabetes costs $174 billion annually, including $116 billion in direct medical expenses.
