Type 2 diabetes: are you at risk? the lowdown on this condition

With more than 5.5 million people in the uK expected to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes by 2030*, could you be next?

Over the past 20 years, the number of people diagnosed with diabetes in the uK has more than doubled from 1.4 million to almost 3.7 million. this dramatic rise has put an extreme burden on the nHs, costing £8.8 billion each year.

“as the number of people with type 2 diabetes continues to grow, there’s a risk that these costs will rise to unsustainable levels,” warns Pav Kalsi, senior clinical advisor at Diabetes uK. unlike irreversible type 1 diabetes, where the body can’t produce insulin,

10% of the nHs budget is spent on type 2 diabetes – that’s £1 million an hour. “the good news is that type 2 diabetes is a reversible condition for a lot of people, so costs could be saved,” says Dr

Campbell murdoch, GP and medical officer for diabetes.co.uk. “the challenge now is to empower as many people as possible.” Here’s everything you need to know about the condition…