Did you know? Type 2 diabetes is skyrocketing in India: there
are now upwards of 63 million people with the disease
nationwide, compared with 50.8 million in 2010.1 India’s
economic boom has been accompanied by a meteoric increase in the
number of people with diabetes – and those at risk for the
disease. Prevalence rates are up to 20% in some cities, and
recent figures showed surprisingly increased rates in rural
areas. In response, the Indian government has dramatically
increased spending on diabetes and other non-communicable
diseases, with USD 11.6 billion going to chronic disease over
the next five years – a six-fold increase on the previous five
years.2 The national programme on diabetes is focusing on early
years prevention through educational programmes in schools in
100 districts, and a national prevalence study is underway. 1.
International Diabeted Federation Diabetes Atlas, 5th edition
2012 update (1): CIA factbook (2): WHO 2008 (3): IDF Diabetes
Atlas, 5th edition annual update, 2012