That works out at around one passenger on a full double decker bus having type 2 diabetes without realising it. Or put it another way, according to Diabetes UK, most of us will have a friend or family member who has type 2 diabetes but doesn’t know it.
"When you consider the potentially devastating health consequences of type 2 diabetes, it is shocking that so many people have the condition and do not know it,” says Diabetes UK chief executive, Barbara Young. “These figures show that every time we walk down our local high street, we are likely to be walking past people who have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes.
"This is a real concern, because it is only by getting the condition diagnosed early that people can start getting the treatment they need to prevent serious health complications, including blindness, amputation, kidney failure and stroke. Getting these people diagnosed is a race against time, and unfortunately it is a race we are all too often losing.”
The charity is urging people to get their risk of diabetes assessed – for instance, if you are overweight, if you have a large waist or you are physically inactive, your risk may be higher than average. Older people and those from a black or South Asian background are also at higher risk, as are people with a family history of diabetes.
Studies suggest that type 2 diabetes can go undiagnosed for up to 10 years. But by that time, half of those with the disease already have signs of complications. In an attempt to raise awareness of the disease, Diabetes UK is encouraging people to talk to their friends and family about type 2 diabetes.
“Making them aware that someone can have the condition for a number of years, without realising, could be the vital first step towards someone being diagnosed and getting the healthcare that can give them the best chance of a long and healthy life," adds Young.
In a separate study, researchers from the Medical Research Council’s Epidemiology Unit discovered that waist measurement may be a more effective means of predicting an increased risk of type 2 diabetes than body mass index (BMI). Having analysed information on more than 340,000 Europeans, they found that overweight people with a large waist (more than 40 inches for men and 34.5 inches for women) have a similar risk of developing type 2 diabetes to that of those who are clinically obese.
