- Approximately 530 million adults worldwide live with diabetes.
- People with diabetes are at higher risk of developing a variety of health complications.
- When a person has multiple diabetes-related health complications, it is called a multimorbid long-term condition (MLTC).
- Researchers at Imperial College London found that not only does diabetes accelerate the onset of MLTC by 15 to 20 years, but these MLTCs significantly shorten the life expectancy of people with diabetes.
Now, researchers from Imperial College London in the UK report that not only does diabetes accelerate the onset of MLTC by 15 to 20 years, but these MLTCs result in a significantly shorter life expectancy for people with diabetes. are.
In their analysis, the researchers found that by age 50, about one-third of study participants with diabetes had at least three MLTCs. Conversely, people without diabetes did not obtain three MLTCs until age 65 to 70 years.
The scientists also found that the average age of onset of MLTC in at least two diabetic participants was 66 to 67 years. Additionally, the younger a person is diagnosed with diabetes, the more severe their MLTC levels become as they age.
“Multiple long-term conditions have emerged as one of the most challenging population health threats worldwide.” Dr. Edward W. GreggProfessor in the Department of Population Health, RCSI College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland, and Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Imperial College London, and corresponding author of the study. Today's medical news.
“Aging is thought to be primarily the problem, and longer lifespans are a factor, but that doesn't tell the whole story. We know this is also present in young and middle adulthood. “We have confirmed that it is a big challenge,” he added.
When Greg and his team looked at specific MLTCs, the most common MLTCs seen across all ages and genders were:
“While we were not surprised that diabetes was associated with MLTC, we were surprised by its diversity and severity. It occurs with age,” Gregg said.
“High blood pressure [and] Coronary heart disease was expected. However, no association was found with asthma or osteoarthritis. Although the association with depression was expected, the fact that it was so frequently accompanied by diabetes in young adulthood was surprising. ”
– Dr. Edward W. Gregg
The researchers also looked at how many years of life people with diabetes lost to MLTC.
The scientists found that participants with more MLTC lived together for fewer years and died earlier than those without MLTC.
For example, researchers found that participants with diabetes and three MLTCs lived approximately 10 years, five years shorter than the general population, whereas diabetic participants with at least five MLTCs lived five years and found that they died six years earlier than the participants. People who don't have MLTC.
Gregg and his team also found that young people with diabetes who experience MLTC experience greater life years spent and life lost.
For example, by age 40, people with diabetes and MLTC lose about 4 years of life with each disease compared to people without MLTC.
“This may indicate that these symptoms are particularly severe if they occur in young adulthood,” Gregg says. “But in most cases, chronic diseases tend to negatively impact disability and life expectancy over time, so we need to find ways to prevent people from developing such conditions early on.”
“Diabetes itself is highly preventable, and preventing its development helps reduce the accumulation of further disease,” he continued.
Furthermore, the researchers added, “Diabetes is also very manageable, and if properly managed, the development of MLTC can be reduced.” The next step is to identify, develop, and test the efficacy of interventions that can reduce the onset or worsening of MLTC. ”
After reviewing this research, Pouya Shafipur, Marylandsaid a board-certified family physician and bariatric physician at Providence St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California. MNT He wasn't surprised by the results.
“This is what we would expect because diabetes and the state of insulin resistance in the body begins long before diabetes is diagnosed,” Shafipour explained. “They often have a fatty liver or insulin resistance, and that's when the damage really starts to happen to the body and all the organs.”
“People with diabetes are at increased risk of: atherosclerotic heart diseasecerebrovascular disease (CVA), stroke, retinopathy, neurological disorders, kidney disease, and several different conditions,” he added. “So this is a systemic symptom, so it's not surprising at all.”
MNT I also talked to Dr. Yuming Neea board-certified cardiologist and lipid specialist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, Calif., agreed with the assessment.
“There [are] “Diabetes affects a variety of symptoms,” Nee explained. “We're talking about the issue of how the body metabolizes sugar. It doesn't just affect blood sugar levels. It affects the body from top to bottom in terms of bodily functions and how organs work. .”
“We think a lot about heart disease because from a cardiac perspective, it includes things like coronary artery disease, risk of heart attack and stroke, high blood pressure,” he continued.
“All of these are related to diabetes, and are not only caused directly by diabetes, which affects blood vessel and organ function, but can also be linked to diabetes due to underlying metabolic issues, especially obesity. Therefore, research The results are not surprising to me; rather, they just highlight how long-term, significant diabetes exposure can affect health in many different ways.
– Dr. Yuming Nee