Facts & Statistics 

► Around 3.2 million deaths every year are attributable to complications of diabetes; that is the equivalent of six deaths every minute. [1]

► Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S. behind heart disease, cancer, stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases, and accidents (unintentional injuries).[2]

► One out of every five healthcare dollars is spent caring for someone diagnosed with diabetes, while one in ten healthcare dollars being spent is attributed to diabetes. Yet, every one dollar invested in diabetes education can cut healthcare costs by nearly nine dollars. [3]

► The 2007 per capita annual costs of healthcare for people with diabetes is $11,744 a year, of which $6,649 (57 percent) is attributed to diabetes. The U.S. national economic burden of pre-diabetes and diabetes reached approximately $218 billion in 2007. [4]

► Compared to non-Hispanic white adults, the risk of diagnosed diabetes was 18 percent higher among Asian Americans, 66 percent higher among Hispanics, and 77 percent higher among non-Hispanic blacks. [5]

► Today, diabetes continues to be the leading cause of kidney failure, non-traumatic lower-extremity amputations, and blindness among adults, ages 20-74. [6]

Sources:

[1] World Health Organization. Diabetes.

[2] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Deaths and Mortality.” 

[3] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Preventing Diabetes and Its Complications.”

[4] Health Affairs. “The Economic Burden of Diabetes.”

[5] National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. National Diabetes Fact Sheet, 2011.

[6] Center for Disease Control and Prevention. “Chronic Diseases and Health Promotion.”