KIDS EATING THEMSELVES SICK
THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN AND TEENAGERS BEING DIAGNOSED WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES HAS SOARED IN THE LAST YEAR
AN EPIDEMIC of children and teenagers with Type 2 diabetes is sweeping across the UK - with children younger than four affected.
There were 4,315 children and teenagers with a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes in 2016/17 a figure that had soared by nearly two-thirds from 2,654 the previous year.
Largely dietrelated, Type 2 diabetes develops when a person consumes too much glucose - more than the body can produce enough insulin for.
The pancreas, which produces the insulin needed to move glucose into cells, tires from having to work extra hard to keep up with the high glucose
levels. Glucose then builds up in the blood so the body tries to convert it to other things like fat tissue, which is why being overweight or obese is associated with diabetes. In the UK there were 2,440 girls up to the age of 19 with Type 2 diabetes, compared with 1,875 boys in 2016/17.
Some 80 boys and 85 girls with Type 2 diabetes were aged four and under.
A further 220 boys and 190 girls between the ages of five and nine had the disease.
There were 455 boys and 525 girls aged 10-14 with Type 2 diabetes - as well as 1,120 boys and 1,640 girls aged 15-19.
Overall, 2.9 million people in the UK have Type 2 diabetes - a 15 per cent increase from the 2.5 million in the previous year.
A spokesperson for Diabetes UK said: “It’s shocking that children are having to struggle with a condition that could have been prevented.
“The government needs to take decisive action to make the healthy choice the easy choice, including stronger regulation on junk food marketing to children and supporting the reformulation of foods to reduce sugar and saturated fat.”
Unlike Type 1 diabetes - which is an autoimmune disease - Type 2 can be reversed if glucose levels are lowered to a normal level.
What is not reversible is the damage that having Type 2 diabetes may have caused to the body - such as glaucoma to the eye, which can lead to blindness.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “We know that childhood obesity is one of our greatest health challenges. “Our world-leading strategy recognises this threat, with comprehensive plans to tackle inequalities through taxes on sugary drinks, funding further research and helping children to exercise more. “However, we have always said that this was the start of the conversation on obesity, not the final word - and we have not ruled out further action if the right results are not seen.”