According to the International Diabetes Federation, in the Europe region 66 million adults are estimated to have diabetes and this figure is predicted to rise to 81 million by 2045. For 2017, this equates to 1 in 11 adults with diabetes.

There were estimated to be approximately 690,000 deaths due to diabetes in 2017.

1 in 6 births are affected by hyperglycaemia in pregnancy.

Over one third of diabetes cases have not been diagnosed and are at a higher risk of developing harmful and costly complications.

Compared with a healthy weight man, an obese man is: five times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes; three times more likely to develop cancer of the colon; more than two and a half times more likely to develop high blood pressure – a major risk factor for stroke and heart disease.

An obese woman, compared with a healthy weight woman, is: almost 13 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes; more than four times more likely to develop high blood pressure; more than three times more likely to have a heart attack.**

* World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Health Observatory data repository.

** Professor Terence Stephenson in Measuring Up, a 2013 report on the nation’s obesity crisis by the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC).

The OECD estimates that average healthcare expenditure for an obese person is 25% higher than for someone of normal weight. 

The OECD also quote a recent German study which showed, for instance, that overweight and obese children have higher healthcare costs than other children at the same age: costs are €62 higher for obese children per year, and €27 higher for overweight children, in comparison to a child with a healthy weight.

We are all living longer. In the EU, life expectancy at birth for males is expected to increase by 7.8 years over the projection period, from 78.3 in 2016 to 86.1 in 2070.

For females, life expectancy at birth is projected to increase by 6.6 years for females, from 83.7 in 2013 to 90.3 in 2070.