VANCOUVER — A British Columbia study suggests Type 2 diabetes has drastically increased among young people, with the highest number of new cases for South Asians — twice the rate of Caucasian youth and triple that of Chinese in the same age group.
The study led by Providence Health Care found that the majority of young people under 30 with diabetes have Type 2 diabetes, which, unlike Type 1, is caused mostly by obesity and physical inactivity and was previously linked to older adults.
Dr. Calvin Ke, one of the study authors, says urgent action is needed to prevent Type 2 diabetes among youth who are being diagnosed as early as age 20, though screening for the disease doesn't start until age 40.
The study says 62 per cent of white youth with diabetes have Type 2, while in South Asians that number rises to 86 per cent and in Chinese youth it is 87 per cent.
Senior author Dr. Nadia Khan says although the study did not look at the causes of rising rates of youth diabetes, obesity, high-calorie diets laden with sugar and sedentary lifestyles are likely responsible.
The study has been published in the Diabetic Medicine journal.
