More than 100 million people in India now diabetic

A latest study by the Indian Council of Medical Research revealed shocking figures. India now has more than 101 million people living with diabetes. This number was 70 million in the year 2019, which means an increase of more than 30 million people in a span of just 3 years.

The ICMR study was published in the Lancet, a UK medical journal. The study mentions that the rise in diabetic patients requires “urgent state-specific interventions”, as the numbers are increasing at an alarming rate in many states.

Scientists examined more than 1 lakh people from rural and urban areas of the country between October 2008 and 2020 to get the numbers. After two years, when the research included all of the low-prevalence northeastern states and removed those with typically high numbers, the prevalence plummeted to 72 million.

“This time we included 31 states and UTs. The weighted prevalence is now reflecting the ground reality”, said Dr. Ranjit Mohan Anjana, president of the Madras Diabetic Research Foundation. He is also the co-author of this study.

Goa has the highest amount of type-1 and type-2 diabetes with a staggering 26.4%. Puducherry and Kerala come close second and third, with 26.3% and 25.5% respectively. The study also gives a warning about an explosion of such cases in states with lower numbers like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Arunachal Pradesh over the next few years.

High blood sugar levels can increase the risks of cardiac arrest, strokes, and kidney diseases. Along with diabetes, 81.2% of the population suffers from abdominal cholesterol, 28.6% have generalized obesity, and 39.5% were found to have abdominal obesity. All these factors together contribute extensively towards poor health and possible untimely deaths.