CDC: 9.3% of U.S. population has diabetes

ATLANTA - More than 29 million people in the United States have diabetes, up from the previous estimate of 26 million in 2010, according to a report released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One-in-four people with diabetes doesn’t know he or she has it.

Another 86 million adults — more than 1-in-3 U.S. adults — have prediabetes, where their blood sugar levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be classified as Type 2 diabetes. Without weight loss and moderate physical activity, 15% to 30% of people with prediabetes will develop Type 2 diabetes within five years. 

“These new numbers are alarming and underscore the need for an increased focus on reducing the burden of diabetes in our country,” said Ann Albright, director of CDC’s Division of Diabetes Translation. “Diabetes is costly in both human and economic terms. It’s urgent that we take swift action to effectively treat and prevent this serious disease.”

Key findings from the National Diabetes Statistics Report, 2014 (based on health data from 2012), include:

• 29 million people in the United States (9.3%) have diabetes;


• 1.7 million people ages 20 years or older were newly diagnosed with diabetes in 2012;


• Non-Hispanic black, Hispanic and American Indian/Alaska Native adults are about twice as likely to have diagnosed diabetes as non-Hispanic white adults;


• 208,000 people younger than 20 years have been diagnosed with diabetes (Type 1 or Type 2);


• 86 million adults ages 20 years and older have prediabetes; and


• The percentage of U.S. adults with prediabetes is similar for non-Hispanic whites (35%), non-Hispanic blacks (39%) and Hispanics (38%).

In 2012, diabetes and its related complications accounted for $245 billion in total medical costs and lost work and wages. This figure is up from $174 billion in 2007.