Rising diabetes cases cause concern in India

Some 11 per cent of Indians are diabetic, a government study found, adding that diabetes, hypertension and obesity are much more common in India than previously estimated.

The study of more than 113,000 people also found that around 15 per cent of Indians were pre-diabetic and around 35 per cent have hypertension. It was conducted between October 2008 and December 2020 across 31 Indian states and territories.

“It is quite evident from the study results that India has a substantial population at risk of cardiovascular disease and other longterm organ complications,” RS Dhaliwal, head of the non-communicable diseases division at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), said.

The ICMR, which funded the study, estimates India – the world’s most populous country – has 101 million people with diabetes. That is 36 per cent more than a 2021 estimate of 74.2 million people by the International Diabetes Federation.

The Indian government says unhealthy diets, lack of physical activity as well as the harmful use of alcohol and tobacco are factors behind the rise in cases of people with diabetes.

India’s health secretary said last month the “lifestyle of a large section of the population has become more sedentary than before” and the burden of metabolic diseases was growing.