Diabetes raises chances of cardiovascular disease

People with diabetes have 21 per cent greater chance of developing cardiovascular disease than do people without it — even if key heart disease risk factors are well controlled. A study based on a decade of data on 811,579 adults showed risk factors included blood pressure, smoking and levels of cholesterol, triglycerides and blood sugar. According to the American Heart Association, nearly 70 per cent of people 65 and older who have diabetes die of a type of heart disease.