We need not venture far and wide to get firsthand information on diabetes, especially if we live in highly urbanized places.

Diabetes is a common disease that has become a norm in households and even in workplaces. Almost everyone knows someone who is inflicted with this debilitating disease. Unfortunately, it has been widely accepted that we have also been complacent. We fail to recognize we have a huge role to play in preventing and possibly reversing type 2 diabetes. Globally, diabetes is considered one of the leading causes of death and disability. Its colossal impact transcends country, age group, and sex. It is no longer about your genes! Anyone can acquire it as almost all cases or about 96 percent are type 2 diabetes. It is lifestyle related. To give us a detailed picture of the global burden of diabetes, a distinguished team of researchers led by Kanyin Liane Ong, utilized the most recent evidentiary and analytical framework from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries and Risk Factors Study (GBD) to produce a location-specific, age-specific, and sex-specific estimation of the prevalence and burden of diabetes since 1990 all the way to 2021. This study included the proportion of the type 2 diabetes burden attributable to some risk factors, as well as projections of diabetes prevalence by the year 2050. Recently published by The Lancet on June 22, the most comprehensive and peer-reviewed paper is entitled *Global, regional, and national burden of diabetes from 1991 to 2021, with projections of prevalence to 2050—a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021*. The team of researchers estimated the prevalence and burden of diabetes in 204 countries and territories, gathering data across 25 age groups, separating and combining data for males and females, respectively. Their estimates included the lost years of healthy life measured in disability-adjusted life years or DALYs. Simply put, DALYs is the sum of years of life lost and the years lived with disability. To estimate deaths caused by diabetes, the team used the Cause of Death Ensemble model (CODEm) while incorporating 25,666 location-years of data. They went through a rigorous process of research in order to come up with the following findings that are astounding and quite alarming. As of 2021, there were 529 million people worldwide that are suffering from diabetes. With a global prevalence rate of six percent, this makes diabetes one of the top 10 leading causes of death and disability. It is projected that global diabetes cases will soar from 529 million in 2021 to a whopping 1.4 billion by 2050. In fact, every country will see prevalence rates increase in the next 30 years. The highest rate among countries is in the super region of North Africa and the Middle East with nine percent prevalence rate. This value is projected to increase to 16.8 percent by 2050. The prevalence rate in Latin America and Caribbean is projected to increase to 11.3 percent. The study also predicted that 89 or 43.6 percent of the 204 countries included in this study will have a rate greater than 10 percent by 2050. Diabetes remains a major public health issue with type 2 diabetes being largely preventable and for some cases, may be reversible, especially when diagnosed and managed early on. Will you do your part to prevent, reverse, and possibly halt the increase in its prevalence rate or will you allow yourself to be a victim or worse a casualty of this disease? According to this study, all evidence indicates that diabetes is primarily due to a rise in obesity or high body mass index (BMI) caused by multiple factors. High BMI accounts for about 52 percent of type 2 diabetes disability and mortality. The other risk factors were diet, environmental and occupational, smoking tobacco, low physical activity, and alcohol consumption. All of these risk factors are considered lifestyle related and modifiable. Which leads us to the conclusion that, if we are willing, we are able to do something in our own little ways, as well as collectively to ease the world from the global burden of diabetes.

Do you want to do your part? Reflect on these questions.

* Will you intentionally walk and stand more to be physically active? * Will you intentionally incorporate vegetables, fruits and whole grains in your daily diet? * Will you avoid or reduce intake of red meat, dairy, sweets and highly processed food? * Will you quit smoking? * Will you quit drinking alcoholic beverages? * Will you have regular medical check-ups? * Will you make an effort to get adequate and quality sleep? * Will you learn coping skills to manage stress?
A poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, inadequate sleep, and rest, stress, smoking, and alcohol are all risk factors for obesity and diabetes. Fighting diabetes requires a holistic approach.

Even if we are knowledgeable about all these things, however, if we refuse to take that first small step to change our behavior, we can’t help ease the global burden of diabetes.

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