Facts and Figures
About 26 million Americans (18.8 million diagnosed plus 7 million undiagnosed) 20 years of age and older, have
diabetes, and DM2 accounts for 90–95% of diabetes cases; another 79 million people in the United States have
prediabetes (i.e., elevated levels of blood glucose that are not high enough to meet the diagnostic criteria for
diabetes). Although it can occur at any age, DM2 is most commonly diagnosed after age 40. The recent increased
prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents in the U.S. has led to a corresponding increase in the diagnosis of
DM2 in a younger population. There is a higher incidence of DM2 among Hispanics (10.4%) and African Americans
(11.8%) compared to Whites (6.6%) and Asian Americans (7.5%), while 35% of Pima Indians have DM2. In 2000,
the estimated risk of men and women for developing DM2 was 32.8% and 38.5% respectively. DM2 is often present
for 4–7 years before it is diagnosed; at the time of diagnosis, 25% of patients have retinopathy, 9% have neuropathy,
and 8% have nephropathy. The condition is associated with a two-fold increased risk of CVD in men and a 3–4-fold
increased risk in women. Approximately two thirds of patients with DM2 die of CVD or stroke. One-fifth of patients
with DM2 develop end-stage renal disease within 20 years