Diabetes FAQ's

General Diabetes Statistics

Diabetes affects an estimated 21 million people in the U.S. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and the American Diabetes Association, those affected include:

• 9.7 million women (8.8 percent of all women)
• 10.9 million men (10.5 percent of all men)
• 176,500 people under age 20
• 10.3 million adults over age 60
• 3.2 million African Americans (13.3 percent of all African Americans)
• 2.5 million Hispanic/Latino Americans (9.5 percent of all Hispanic/Latino Americans)
• 13.1 million Caucasian Americans (8.7 percent of all Caucasian Americans)

According to the most recent statistics, diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death, and the fifth leading cause of death from disease.

General Diabetes Facts

The diabetes statistics listed below come from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Diabetes Fact Sheet for the United States, 2005.

• Diabetes remains a leading cause of heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney disease and amputations.
• The estimated total (direct and indirect) costs of diabetes in the U.S. in 2002 was $132 billion.
• Since 1987, the death rate due to diabetes has increased by 45 percent while the death rates due to heart disease, stroke and cancer have declined.
• Minorities are at a greater risk for diabetes than non-Hispanic whites. After adjusting for population age differences, non-Hispanic blacks are 1.8 times more likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites, while Mexican Americans -- the largest Hispanic subgroup -- are 1.7 times as likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites.