Diabetic Facts

Posted by on Oct 11, 2005 in | 8 comments

I’ve plucked a few facts here and there to share with you about diabetes.

  1. Around 3.2 million deaths every year are attributable to complications of diabetes; six deaths every minute. (World Health Organization)
  2. “Mario Puzo, author of “”The Godfather”" was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  3. “As a sophmore in high school, professional football player Tony George was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes” (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center)
  4. “Bobby Clark, legend of the Philadelphia Flyers, was the first professional hockey player with diabetes” (The Diabetic Athlete)
  5. “The total cost of diabetes in the United States, 2002 was $132 billion including $92 billion of Direct medical costs and $40 billion Indirect costs: (disability, work loss, premature mortality)” (NNational Diabetes Fact Sheet)
  6. “B.B. King, rhythm and blues star is diabetic and stars in all those LifeScan bloodtesting commercials” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  7. “Jackie Robinson, baseball star who broke the color barrier in the Major Leagues was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  8. “A diabetes epidemic is underway. An estimated 30 million people worldwide had diabetes in 1985. A decade later, the global burden of diabetes was estimated to be 135 million. The latest WHO estimate Ð for the number of people with diabetes, worldwide, in 2000 Ð is 171 million. This is likely to increase to at least 366 million by 2030.” (World Health Organization)
  9. “Thomas Edison, the genius inventor was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  10. “Nell Carter, of the television show “”Gimme a Break”" is diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  11. Dr. George Minot was the first person with diabetes to receive Nobel Prize for Medicine (dLife)
  12. “David Crosby, member of The Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young is diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  13. “Olympic Gold Medla swimmer Gary Hall, Jr was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 1999″ (“Gary Hall, Jr Bio”)
  14. About 65% of deaths among people with diabetes are due to heart disease and stroke. (National Diabetes Fact Sheet)
  15. “Among adults with diagnosed diabetes, 16% take insulin only, 12% take both insulin and oral medication, 57% take oral medication only, and 15% do not take either insulin or oral medications.” (ADA The Dangerous Toll of Diabetes)
  16. “Under those red suspenders, talk show host Larry King is diabetic” (dLife)
  17. “Ron Santo, third basemen for the Chicago Cubs was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  18. “Billie Jean King, tennis player is diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  19. “Diabetes is the fifth-deadliest disease in the United States. Since 1987 the death rate due to diabetes has increased by 45 percent, while the death rates due to heart disease, stroke, and cancer have declined.” (ADA The Dangerous Toll of Diabetes)
  20. “The top 10 countries, in numbers of sufferers of diabetes, are India, China, USA, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan, Russia, Brazil Italy and Bangladesh.” (World Health Organization)
  21. “Albert Ellis, psychologist, rational emotive therapy was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  22. “There are 23.6 million people in the United States, or 8.0% of the population, who have diabetes.” (ADA)
  23. “Jerry Mathers, actor of “”Leave It To Beaver”" fame is/was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  24. “Recent studies in China, Canada, USA and several European countries have shown that feasible lifestyle interventions can prevent the onset of diabetes in people at high risk.” (World Health Organization)
  25. LPGA golfer Michelle McGann learned of her diabetes at age 13. (The Diabetic Athlete)
  26. “Miles Davis, legendary jazz great was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  27. Sharon Stone’s diabetes did not stop her wowing us in Basic Instinct (Keeping Well With Diabetes Newsletter)
  28. “Paul Cezanne died of pneumonia and complication from diabetes, on October 22, 1906″ (dLife)
  29. “Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas and 2008 Presidental candidate, has Type-2 diabetes” (dLife)
  30. “Tommy Lee, of heavy metal band Motley Crue is diabetic…. rock on!” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  31. “Jackie Gleason, funny star of “”The Honeymooners”" and many other movies/shows was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  32. “Mary Tyler Moore, actress and star of “”The Mary Tyler Moore Show”" and other movies is diabetic. She is a chairperson of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation” (Health Diary)
  33. “Catfish Hunter, pitcher for the Oakland A’s and the New York Yankees was diabetic. I saw him pitch in the 1973 American League Championships, me wiht only 3 years of being diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  34. “Walt Kelly, animator and Disney founder was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  35. New findings suggest that poorly controlled diabetes may lead to Alzheimer’s disease. (Medicine.net)
  36. “Diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death from disease, shortens the average life span by up to 15 years, and is the main cause of new blindness, kidney failure, and amputations in the United States. Interviews with 2 practitioners and 8 individuals with diabetes illustrate how individuals embody their illness. Interviewed persons with diabetes tended to be most closely associated with the disciplined body type and pursued high levels of bodily control, in contrast to an idealized type, the communicative body, which can be considered an ethical ideal.” (Understanding the Diabetic Body-Self)
  37. “Winnie Mandela, South African anti-apartheid leader is diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  38. “Yuri Andropov, former premier of Soviet Union was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  39. “Fiorello LaGuardia, former New York mayor and the person for whom the airport’ is named was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  40. “Sugar Ray Robinson, boxer was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  41. Musician Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd was diabetic (dLife)
  42. “Arthur Ashe, tennis legend was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  43. “H.G. Wells, writer, “”The Invisible Man”" and “”War of the Worlds”" was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  44. “Ray Kroc, founder of McDonald’s fast food restaurants was diabetic at the time he bought his first restaurant” (Woopidoo! Biographies)
  45. A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that the prevalence of diabetes rose 5% annually since 1990 and ‘and appears to be linked to increasing obesity’. (ADA In Diabetes Today)
  46. India has the largest number of diabetics in the world; a total of 10 million. (DoctorNDTV)
  47. “Diabetic retinopathy causes from 12,000 to 24,000 new cases of blindness each year” (National Diabetes Fact Sheet)
  48. At least 171 million people worldwide have diabetes; this figure is likely to be more than double by 2030. (World Health Organization)
  49. “Overall, direct health care costs of diabetes range from 2.5% to 15% of annual health care budgets, depending on local diabetes prevalence and the sophistication of the treatment available.” (World Health Organization)
  50. “In the U.S. population of adults born between 1931 and 1941, diabetes is associated with a profound negative impact on economic productivity. By 1992, an estimated 60 billion US dollars in lost productivity was associated with diabetes; additional annual losses averaged 7.3 billion US dollars over the next eight years, totaling about 120 billion US dollars by the year 2000″ (The impact of diabetes on workforce participation)
  51. Former NBA Basketball player Chris Dudley is diabetic (The Diabetic Athlete)
  52. “Anne Rice, “”Interview With a Vampire”" author is diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  53. “Dale Evans, actress, singer and wife of Roy Rogers was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  54. “About 210,000 people under 20 years of age have diabetes. This represents 0.26% of all people in this age group.” (National Diabetes Fact Sheet)
  55. Diabetes in the United States has increased by 14 percent in just two years and now affects 7 percent of the population. (In Diabetes Today)
  56. “2 million. 8.2% of all Hispanic/Latino Americans aged 20 years or older have diabetes. On average, Hispanic/Latino Americans are 1.5 times more likely to have diabetes than non-Hispanic whites of similar age.” (National Diabetes Fact Sheet)
  57. Almost 1 in 17 people worldwide are diabetic. More than 1800 cases of diabetes are diagnosed everyday. (DoctorNDTV)
  58. “The Godfather of Soul, James Brown, had diabetes.” (dLife)
  59. “The honeymoon period is a time when people with type 1 diabetes, shortly after their diagnosis, experience what seems to be a remission of the disease or a restoration of the production of insulin.” (About.com Guide to Diabetes)
  60. Former professional ballet dancer Zippora Karz was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 21 (The Diabetic Athlete)
  61. One out of every 10 health care dollars is spent on diabetes and its complications. (ADA The Dangerous Toll of Diabetes)
  62. Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in American adults. Diabetic retinopathy accounts for 12% of all new cases of blindness in the US. ()
  63. “Menachem Begin, Israeli prime minister was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  64. “118,000 (15.1%) American Indians and Alaska Natives aged 20 years or older have diabetes (both diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes). Taking into account population age differences, American Indians and Alaska Natives are 2.2 times as likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites.” (ADA)
  65. Two (2) million adolescents (or 1 in 6 overweight adolescents) aged 12-19 have pre-diabetes. (ADA)
  66. “In 1924, a 14 year old boy Leonard Thompson was the first human with diabetes to receive insulin” (DoctorNDTV)
  67. “Diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death listed on U.S. death certificates in 2000. This is based on the 69,301 death certificates in which diabetes was listed as the underlying cause of death. Altogether, diabetes contributed to 213,062 deaths.” (National Diabetes Fact Sheet)
  68. “In 250 AD Rome, diabetes was diagnosed by tasting the urine for sweetness.” (Accu-Check Diabetes Quiz)
  69. “Johnny Cash, legendary country singer, known as “”the man in black”" was diabetic” (Diabetes Health Magazine)
  70. “Non-Hispanic white children have the highest rates of diabetes in the United States, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday, and the disease appears to be more common than expected.” (Reuters)