Combating the diabetes epidemic.

What would happen if one could develop diabetes as quickly as catching the common cold? Well of course this is not the case, but diabetes is becoming more and more common in the United States. From the period 1980 through 2002, the number of Americans diagnosed with diabetes mellitus more than doubled (from 5.8 million people to 13 million people). New evidence reveals that one in three Americans born in 2000 will develop diabetes sometime during their lifetime. Diabetes has the greatest impact on older adults, women, and particular racial and ethnic groups. One in five adults over the age of 65 has diabetes. African Americans, Hispanics, Native American Indians and Alaska Native adults are two to three times more likely than Caucasian adults to have diabetes. In addition to these statistics, an estimated 41 million United States adults aged 40-74 have prediabetes. Prediabetes is defined as blood glucose elevated more than normal, but not increased enough to be classified as that of diabetes mellitus. Fasting blood glucose levels greater than 100 mg/dl but less than 126 mg/dl is characteristic of prediabetes. These people are at great risk for developing diabetes.