Shocking Diabetes Stats for Young Americans

It’s becoming a downright plague on America’s youth. A recent study published in Diabetes Care projected a staggering increase in young people likely to be afflicted with diabetes. New models forecast an almost 700% increase in this serious illness in children and adolescents in the next 40 years.

Medical researchers teased out the incident rate of diabetes until 2060 and found a 12% increase in young diabetics, with type 2 increasing more rapidly than type 1 (90-95% are afflicted with type 2). The study also found that diabetes appears to be more prevalent in the non-Hispanic black population.

Diabetes Often Linked to Obesity

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) defines diabetes as “a chronic (long-lasting) health condition that affects how your body turns food into energy.” For type 1, the body inexplicably stops making insulin, and the condition is often diagnosed in childhood or adolescence. Type 2 occurs when the pancreas doesn’t make enough insulin to keep blood sugar levels normal. Medical experts still don’t know how to prevent type 1, but diet and exercise can control type 2.

Obesity, which is scored through the body mass index, is on the rise among US youngsters. The CDC calculates the obesity level at more than 12% for kids 2-5, more than 20% for those 6-11, and more than 22% for those 12-19. The rates for Hispanic and black children are around 25%.

The CDC avers, “Obesity-related conditions include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, breathing problems such as asthma and sleep apnea, and joint problems.”

Longtime WW Wellness Coach Janet Sherrill told Liberty Nation she wasn’t surprised at the skyrocketing numbers. “It’s not what you do once in a while, but what you do every day that matters,” said Sherrill. “The reality is, it starts with parents being good examples. We see overweight parents day in and day out with overweight children. We need to work on behaviors that focus on good nutrition and an active lifestyle,” Sherrill advised.

Fitness Focus

In 2008, 45% of American kids 6-12 participated in some type of sport, but in just ten years, that number decreased to 38%. According to the Aspen Institute’s Project Play 2020 initiative, sports activities fell along economic lines, with only 19% of children who come from homes earning less than $25K a year participating in a sport.

The late great Lakers basketball star Kobe Bryant, an avid supporter of children’s sports, said, “The most important thing for parents is establishing an element of fun and imagination. I think that's really key. At an early age, it's important for kids to have freedom and have flexibility to create and to imagine and for the game to be fun, while teaching fundamentals of the sport.”

Parents spend a great deal of time and money on their children’s education, but somehow lessons in nutrition seem to get lost in the shuffle. To combat more time spent in front of computers and televisions, moms and dads must make it a point to inculcate healthy dietary and activity habits in their young children.