UK has world's fifth-highest rate of children with type 1 diabetes: Some 24.5 children in every 100,000 in Britain develop the condition, putting the UK behind Finland, Sweden, Saudi Arabia and Norway
The UK has the fifth highest rate in the world of children with type 1 diabetes, which can lead to serious health problems such as blindness and strokes, new research shows.
Some 24.5 children in every 100,000 aged 14 and under develop the condition, according to figures produced by the International Diabetes Federation.
Finland tops an international league table of 88 countries, compiled by Diabetes UK from the data, with a rate of 57.6 per 100,000 children in 2011. Sweden is next with a rate of 43.1, then Saudi Arabia (31.4) and Norway (27.9), and then the UK (24.5).
The UK's rate is about twice as high as that in Spain (13) and France (12.2), 50% higher than Ireland's (16.3) and a third more than the Netherlands (18.6), Germany and New Zealand (both 18). The league table only covers the 88 countries where the rate of incidence of type 1 diabetes is available. Many others do not record the incidence of the condition.
Experts are puzzled by the findings and do not know why the rate is high in some places. "We do not fully understand why rates of type 1 diabetes vary so greatly and so it is a mystery why the rate is so high in the UK," said Barbara Young, chief executive of Diabetes UK. "One of the main theories is that lack of Vitamin D may increase risk, while people with a family history are more likely to develop it and so genetics also seems to play a role." But it was impossible to identify the exact causes of the condition until more research was done, Young added.
Type 1 diabetes is an auto-immune condition which, unlike the much more common type 2, is not related to diet or other lifestyle factors. About 90% of the 3.7 million people in the UK diagnosed with diabetes have type 2, which is closely associated with obesity, while the other 10% have type 1, according to Diabetes UK.
Type 1 tends to affect children and young adults, though some cases only become apparent in adults. Sufferers cannot produce insulin, so have to get daily doses of it via injections or an insulin pump, and must also control their condition through diet and exercise. Unless it is well managed it can lead to serious complications such as eyesight problems, kidney disease, heart attacks and strokes by as early as the age of 25.
"As incidence is growing by 4% year-on-year, with the greatest rise in under-fives, this problem is only going to get bigger," said Sarah Johnson, director of policy and communications at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. It estimates that about 400,000 people in the UK, including 29,000 children, have the condition. Incidence is expected to double by 2020, the charity says.
"The government's investment in medical research to understand the causes of, and to help cure, type 1 diabetes is woefully inadequate to face the challenge of type 1 diabetes, and its impact on our children, now and in the future," she added.
Dr Justin Warner, a spokesman for the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said the growing number of children with type 1 was "worrying". He said it was also disappointing that about 25% of children with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes have developed diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) – a complication which can be fatal if not treated – by the time they are identified, which has raised concern about late diagnosis. "This cannot be allowed to continue and the time has come for a concerted effort to improve quality of care," Warner added, because of an "alarming" rise in children with DKA being admitted to hospital and "little improvement in outcomes of care and participation in care processes over the last eight years in England and Wales".
An NHS-funded audit of the care of children with diabetes in 2010-11 found that just 6% of those with type 1 receive the eight health checks the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends that all have every year.
Anna Soubry, the public health minister, said new financial incentives in the NHS designed to encourage better care of children with diabetes, and the creation of 10 regional networks of experts in the disease, should help improve the situation. The Guardian
The UK has the fifth highest rate in the world of children with type 1 diabetes, which can lead to serious health problems such as blindness and strokes, new research shows.
Some 24.5 children in every 100,000 aged 14 and under develop the condition, according to figures produced by the International Diabetes Federation.
Finland tops an international league table of 88 countries, compiled by Diabetes UK from the data, with a rate of 57.6 per 100,000 children in 2011. Sweden is next with a rate of 43.1, then Saudi Arabia (31.4) and Norway (27.9), and then the UK (24.5).
The UK's rate is about twice as high as that in Spain (13) and France (12.2), 50% higher than Ireland's (16.3) and a third more than the Netherlands (18.6), Germany and New Zealand (both 18). The league table only covers the 88 countries where the rate of incidence of type 1 diabetes is available. Many others do not record the incidence of the condition.
Experts are puzzled by the findings and do not know why the rate is high in some places. "We do not fully understand why rates of type 1 diabetes vary so greatly and so it is a mystery why the rate is so high in the UK," said Barbara Young, chief executive of Diabetes UK. "One of the main theories is that lack of Vitamin D may increase risk, while people with a family history are more likely to develop it and so genetics also seems to play a role." But it was impossible to identify the exact causes of the condition until more research was done, Young added.
Type 1 diabetes is an auto-immune condition which, unlike the much more common type 2, is not related to diet or other lifestyle factors. About 90% of the 3.7 million people in the UK diagnosed with diabetes have type 2, which is closely associated with obesity, while the other 10% have type 1, according to Diabetes UK.
Type 1 tends to affect children and young adults, though some cases only become apparent in adults. Sufferers cannot produce insulin, so have to get daily doses of it via injections or an insulin pump, and must also control their condition through diet and exercise. Unless it is well managed it can lead to serious complications such as eyesight problems, kidney disease, heart attacks and strokes by as early as the age of 25.
"As incidence is growing by 4% year-on-year, with the greatest rise in under-fives, this problem is only going to get bigger," said Sarah Johnson, director of policy and communications at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. It estimates that about 400,000 people in the UK, including 29,000 children, have the condition. Incidence is expected to double by 2020, the charity says.
"The government's investment in medical research to understand the causes of, and to help cure, type 1 diabetes is woefully inadequate to face the challenge of type 1 diabetes, and its impact on our children, now and in the future," she added.
Dr Justin Warner, a spokesman for the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said the growing number of children with type 1 was "worrying". He said it was also disappointing that about 25% of children with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes have developed diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) – a complication which can be fatal if not treated – by the time they are identified, which has raised concern about late diagnosis. "This cannot be allowed to continue and the time has come for a concerted effort to improve quality of care," Warner added, because of an "alarming" rise in children with DKA being admitted to hospital and "little improvement in outcomes of care and participation in care processes over the last eight years in England and Wales".
An NHS-funded audit of the care of children with diabetes in 2010-11 found that just 6% of those with type 1 receive the eight health checks the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommends that all have every year.
Anna Soubry, the public health minister, said new financial incentives in the NHS designed to encourage better care of children with diabetes, and the creation of 10 regional networks of experts in the disease, should help improve the situation. The Guardian
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