KARACHI: The rise of diabetes is one of the world's most serious health challenges, and whether focusing on the effect of urbanisation at a country, regional or international level, the statistics are getting worse every year as two out of three with diabetes live in cities, says a report released by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) on eve of World Diabetes day on Friday.
Today, nearly two-thirds of everyone with diabetes live in cities, and those who move to cities are significantly more likely to develop diabetes than those who remain in rural settings.
This was said to be for the first time in human history that more people live in cities than rural areas. It's 52% today and by 2050, that figure will have to rise to 70% of the global population, the report said.
From rising wealth and increasing consumption, to more sedentary lifestyles and inequality of access to healthcare, urban living presents a major challenge to health and has become one of the key drivers behind the acceleration of global diabetes and as per IDF announcement that the number of people who suffer from diabetes is now up to 6.7 million and is expected to reach 12.8 million by 2035.
"The global diabetes epidemic is an emergency in slow motion," warned experts mentioning that World Diabetes Day celebrated every year on November 14 as it is the birthday of Frederick Banting who, along with Charles Best, first conceived the idea that led to the discovery of insulin in 1921.
Since the adoption of the United Nations (UN) Resolution on diabetes in December 2006, World Diabetes Day has become an official United Nations World Health Day.
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