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Number of Deaths Caused From Diabetes

In 2005, there were an estimated 20.8 million people living with diabetes mellitus in the United States. Of these cases, 90 to 95 percent were thought to have type 2 diabetes and five to 10 percent were believed to have type 1 diabetes.

  1. Underreporting

    • Diabetes was ranked as the sixth leading cause of death for all Americans in 2006, but only 10 to 15 percent of the death certificates of diabetes patients attributed their cause of death to this disease.

    Complications

    • Sixty-five percent of people with diabetes die from the related complications of heart disease and stroke.

    Race/Ethnicity

    • In 2006, diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death for whites, the fifth leading cause of death for African-Americans and Asians/Pacific Islanders and the fourth leading cause of death for American Indians.

    Prevention

    • Because there is no cure for diabetes, the goal is usually to either prevent the disease or to help people with diabetes avoid developing severe complications.

    Cost

    • The total cost of diabetes, including costs related to premature death, has been estimated at $132 billion.

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