“Diabetes Cases Have Quadrupled in Just Over 3 Decades”

Since 1980 the number of people suffering from diabetes has increased from 108 million to 422 million, about 8.5% of the global population. This increase in diabetes is due to a number of reasons, which were investigated by the World Health Organization, or WHO. According to their studies, 1.5 million people worldwide died because of diabetes, while 2.7 million died of high blood-glucose. Evidently diabetes is a major health issue that needs attention, but tackling the disease costs roughly $827 billion annually in patient care and medicine. Diabetes is classified in two types, type 1 in which insulin is not produced, and type 2 in which insulin is not used efficiently. The increase in cases of diabetes has mainly been in type 2 diabetes. As for the cause of this increase in type 2 diabetes, the WHO stated that the rise mirrors “the global increase in the number of people who are overweight or obese.” The increase of obesity can be found in the insufficient amount of exercise completed by both adults and adolescents. About a quarter of the population of 18 and older was found to have insufficient activity levels in 2010. Furthermore, 84% of adolescent females and 78% of adolescent males do not exercise enough. As for where the increase in diabetes has manifested, the WHO’s reports state, “Prevalence is growing rapidly in low-income and middle-income countries.” Specifically, this includes the Western Pacific, African, Southeast Asian, and Eastern Mediterranean regions. FInally, the WHO included some suggestions that could be done to attempt to decrease the prevalence of diabetes. Some examples include taxes on sugary beverages to discourage the consumption of it, or the promotion of non motorized transport in urban areas. Fortunately, things are already taking a turn for the better. According to the WHO, “Nearly three-quarters (72%) of countries have a national diabetes policy that is implemented with dedicated funding, and countries are also taking action at the policy level to address unhealthy diets and physical inactivity.” Hopefully these policies and reforms will lead to a decrease in the number of diabetes cases in the future.

The extreme increase in diabetes cases certainly affects today’s society. 422 million people are suffering from diabetes, and while diabetes can’t exactly be prevented, an individual’s chance of getting diabetes can be lowered through lifestyle choices like exercise and a healthy diet. Drawing attention through an article such as this one can hopefully aid in raising awareness about the increase in diabetes and persuade people to make better lifestyle choices or governments to implement new policies. Furthermore, not all countries are able to easily access insulin, so perhaps raising awareness could also help those countries in their struggle to get enough insulin for the increasing number of those suffering from diabetes.

Overall, I found the article very informative, and even enjoyable to read. The topic of diabetes is pretty interesting, especially since we just recently discussed it in class. The author did a nice job of making the topic clear and easy to understand through giving just enough detail and using vocabulary that is understandable to people who aren’t scientists. The author also included many quotes from scientists and experts, specifically from the World Health Organization, so I knew that the information was from a reliable source and all the claims that were made by the author could be backed up. The only thing that could have been done better in the article would have been to supply more details on what kinds of policies different governments are enforcing to try and control the number of diabetes cases. While the author did mention the introduction of new policies, the author didn’t give any examples which could add to the reader’s understanding and make the article more detailed and interesting. In the end, I did definitely learn a lot from this article and found it pretty interesting.

Cullinane, Susannah. "Diabetes Cases Have Quadrupled in Just Over 3 Decades." CNN. Cable News Network, 7 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Apr. 2016. <http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/06/health/diabetes-quadruples-who-report/index.html>.