Eight million Americans have Diabetes and don't even know it: Study
A whopping 8 million Americans have diabetes and are unaware of it and as a result, have not made modifications to their diet, according to a new study released Tuesday.
A study found that among those who were diagnosed with diabetes, only about one-quarter met three important goals for people with diabetes: managing blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
"Out of 28.4 million people with diabetes, more than a quarter don't know [it]," said study author Dr. Mohammed Ali, an assistant professor of public health at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta.
"About 80 percent of those people are linked to a health care provider, and two-thirds are seeing them twice a year or more. So, through whatever means, they aren't being identified with diabetes."
Symptoms of type 2 diabetes, which may be subtle and come on slowly, include fatigue, blurred vision, slow-healing cuts and scrapes, and the need to urinate more often, according to Dr. Robert Ratner, chief scientific and medical officer for the ADA.
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) defines type 2 diabetes as a disorder that causes the body to use the hormone insulin inefficiently. Commonly described as insulin resistance condition, this causes the cells to be resistant of insulin hence leaving it in the bloodstream.
"The fact that they go to the doctor rings alarm bells. We're missing out on a whole lot of opportunities." "The answer isn't simple, but we need to identify where the gaps are. Is it high demand on physicians? Is it a system-wide problem? There are a lot of things that could be going on. It probably won't be just one specific thing," Dr. Mohammed Ali further added.
