In an article published on September 8, 2015 in the digital edition of the Los Angeles Times, journalist Deborah Netburn reports on a new study on “Prevalence of and trends in diabetes among adults in the United States, 1988-2012.” The study was published in the peer-reviewed journal The Journal of the American Medical Association and conducted by researchers Andy Menke and colleagues from Social & Scientific Systems Inc, U.S., the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH). The study presents the results of two National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) conducted from 1988-1994 (NHANES III) and 1999-2012 (current NHANES) and designed to be representative of the civilian, non-institutionalized U.S. population. The researchers found that from 2011-2012 the prevalence of diabetes was between 12% and 14%, depending on the definition criteria used. Diabetes prevalence has increased from 9.8% in 1988-1994 to 12.4% in 2011-2012, but changed very little between 2007-2008 and 2011-2012. The proportion of undiagnosed diabetes cases has decreased from 40.3% in 1988-1994 to 31% in 2011-2012. The prevalence of pre-diabetes has increased from 29% in 1990-2002 to 36% in 2007-2010 and to 37-38% in 2011-2012. Overall, these estimates suggest that in 2011-2012 49%-52% of the U.S. population had diabetes of pre-diabetes.

Diabetes and obesity have previously been linked to exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) such as bisphenol A (BPA, CAS 80-05-7) and phthalates (FPF reported).

Read more

Deborah Netburn (September 8, 2015). “Diabetes nation? Half of Americans have diabetes or pre-diabetes.Los Angeles Times

Reference

Menke, A. et al. (2015). “Prevalence of and trends in diabetes among adults in the United States, 1988-2012.The Journal of the American Medical Association 314(10):1021-1029.

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