New data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate a substantial rise in diabetes cases in the last two years, bringing the total cases for 2007 to be almost 24 million, or about 8% of the country’s population.  In the two years before that, the rate of diagnosis rose by about 3 million new cases.

An additional 57 million Americans are thought to be in a pre-diabetic condition, characterized by an increased risk of developing the disease.

Most cases of diabetes are of the type 2 form of the disease, which is associated with poor diet, excess weight, and a sedentary lifestyle.  The disease interferes with the body’s natural ability to use or process insulin, causing the level of sugar in the bloodstream to rise dangerously.  The excess sugar in the bloodstream affects every cell in the body and damages major organs and blood vessels, which, in turn, leads to amputations, blindness, heart and kidney disease, among a host of other maladies.  Diabetes is the number 7 cause of death in the US.

Some sobering statistics released by the CDC on Tuesday include:

• 25% of the American population age 60 and older was diabetic in 2007.
• Native Americans and Alaska Natives have the highest rate of diabetes of all racial and ethnic minorities in the country, with about 16.5% of this population having the disease.
• 12% of the African American population is diabetic.
• 10% of the Hispanic population has the disease.
• 7.5% of all Asian Americans are diabetic.
• 6.6% of the white population is diabetic.

On a more encouraging note, the number of Americans with diabetes but who do not know they have it dropped from 30% to 25% in the two years preceding 2007.  Dr. Ann Albright, the director of the CDC Division of Diabetes Translation, says the increased awareness represented by this drop in numbers proves the center’s efforts have been productive and more people are now in a position to manage the disease more effectively and minimize the complications associated with it.