As this increases, the number of diabetics increases rapidly... Patient, 163% increase in 18 years
Jun 23, 2025
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According to China Daily's state-run China Daily report on the 23rd, Professor Zhou Eigeng of the China Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) announced in the June issue of the Chinese Military Medical Research Journal that the number of diabetic patients in China in 2023 reached 233 million, a 163% increase from 2005.
The prevalence of diabetes in China was estimated to have jumped from 7.53% in 2005 to 13.7% in 2023. If this trend continues, it could rise to 29.1% by 2050, he warned.
In addition, men generally have a higher prevalence of diabetes than women, and by region, there are more diabetic patients in Beijing, Tianjin, and Shanghai.
Obesity was cited as the cause of the surge in the prevalence of diabetes.
China's adult obesity rate increased from 7.1% in 2002 to 16.4% in 2015-2019. However, as policies to slow the increase in obesity are implemented, experts predict that the obesity rate will remain below 15% in 2050.
Overweight and obesity are important risk factors for metabolic diseases, and it is known that the prevalence of type 2 diabetes also increases as the body mass index (BMI) increases.
Studies have shown that when the body mass index exceeds 35, the risk of developing type 2 diabetes increases by about 6 to 10 times compared to normal weight. In a large epidemiological study, it has also been reported that people who gained more than 5 kg in weight over 10 years had an approximately 1.5 to 2 times higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared to those who barely changed their weight. In addition, more than half of actual adult diabetic patients were found to be accompanied by obesity.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
