Editorial
Copyright ©2012 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Diabetes. Jun 15, 2012; 3(6): 110-117
Published online Jun 15, 2012. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v3.i6.110
Trends in prevalence of diabetes in Asian countries
Ambady Ramachandran, Chamukuttan Snehalatha, Ananth Samith Shetty, Arun Nanditha
Ambady Ramachandran, Chamukuttan Snehalatha, Ananth Samith Shetty, Arun Nanditha, India Diabetes Research Foundation, Dr. A. Ramachandran’s Diabetes Hospitals, Chennai 600 008, India
Author contributions: Ramachandran A contributed to the research, discussion and edited the manuscript; Snehalatha C contributed to the research, discussion and prepared the manuscript; Samith Shetty A and Nanditha A contributed to the discussion and reviewed the manuscript.
Correspondence to: Ambady Ramachandran, Professor, President, Chairman, Managing Director, India Diabetes Research Foundation, Dr. A. Ramachandran’s Diabetes Hospitals, 28, Marshalls Road, Egmore, Chennai 600 008, India. ramachandran@vsnl.com
Telephone: +91-44-28582003 Fax: +91-44-42146652
Received: March 9, 2012
Revised: June 4, 2012
Accepted: June 10, 2012
Published online: June 15, 2012
Abstract

Diabetes is a major lifestyle disorder, the prevalence of which is increasing globally. Asian countries contribute to more than 60% of the world’s diabetic population as the prevalence of diabetes is increasing in these countries. Socio-economic growth and industrialization are rapidly occurring in many of these countries. The urban-rural divide in prevalence is narrowing as urbanization is spreading widely, adversely affecting the lifestyle of populations. Asians have a strong ethnic and genetic predisposition for diabetes and have lower thresholds for the environmental risk factors. As a result, they develop diabetes at a younger age and at a lower body mass index and waist circumference when compared with the Western population. The adverse effect of physical inactivity and fatty food are manifested as the increasing rate of overweightness and obesity, even among children. The health care budgets for the disease management are meager and the health care outcome is far from the optimum. As a result, complications of diabetes are common and the economic burden is very high, especially among the poor strata of the society. National endeavors are urgently needed for early diagnosis, effective management and for primary prevention of diabetes. This editorial aims to highlight the rising trend in prevalence of diabetes in Asia, its causative factors and the urgent need to implement national strategies for primary prevention of type 2 diabetes.

Keywords: Type 2 diabetes, Diabetes in Asia, Prevention of diabetes, Lifestyle changes, Urbanization, Burden of diabetes