LONDON: Researchers estimate that around 529 million people worldwide have diabetes, of which 90% to 95% have type 2 diabetes.
People with diabetes are at increased risk of developing serious complications, including heart disease, neurological disorders, kidney disease, gum disease, dementia, mood disorders and vision problems.
If people with diabetes have more than one of these complications, they are said to have multiple long-term medical conditions, medically known as MLTCs.
Researchers at Imperial College London report that not only does diabetes increase the onset of MLTCs by 15-20 years, but these MLTCs also significantly reduce life expectancy in people with diabetes.
The research was recently published in the journal Nature Medicine.
