UKJ Health Radio - Pre-Diabetes

Pre-Diabetes

It has been reported by the BBC that more than a third of adults in England are on the cusp of developing type-2 diabetes.  The British Medical Journal has featured a report that says that since 2003 there is a very fast increase in those being classed as pre-diabetic.   The expected surge in the numbers who go on to develop type 2 diabetes is expected to be correspondingly high.  The condition carries the risk of disability, blindness and early death.

The charity Diabetes UK has also reported that the NHS is already spending one-tenth of its budget on this condition.  In general, people with pre-diabetes will have no symptoms, but their blood sugar levels will be recorded at the high end of the normal range.  Figures show that between 5% and 10% of people with pre-diabetes go on to develop type-2 diabetes every year, the researchers said.

Their study looked at data from a Health Survey for England carried out between 2003 and 2011.

In 2003, a survey of adults showed that about eleven and a half per cent of adults had pre-diabetes, but by 2011 that figure had trebled.  Complications of diabetes include:

• Blood vessel damage
• Increases the risk of heart attacks and stroke
• Nerve damage
• Foot ulcers, potentially leading to amputation
• Blindness
• Kidney damage
• Impaired sexual performance
• Increased risk of miscarriage

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio Medical News Update

Kindly sponsored by 1-stop-health-shop.com