What is the average age for diabetes

An exercise coach may help you become more physically active. At least once a year, your health care team will assess how well you are managing your diabetes. Your management plan might need changes, or you may need more information and support.

A change in health, such as a new diagnosis or complication, or a change in care, such as going home from the hospital, may also lead to changes to your diabetes management plan. Medicare may pay to help you learn how to care for your diabetes.

It may also help pay for diabetes tests, supplies, flu and pneumonia shots, special shoes, foot exams, eye tests, and meal planning. Learn about other ways to help pay for diabetes medications and supplies.

Read about this topic in Spanish. American Diabetes Association toll-free askada diabetes. NIA scientists and other experts review this content to ensure it is accurate and up to date. Diabetes in Older People. On this page: What is diabetes? Types of diabetes What is prediabetes? Symptoms of type 2 diabetes Tests for diabetes Managing type 2 diabetes Help with diabetes costs. Related Articles. However, the development of the condition depends on too many other factors to accurately predict on an individual basis.

A broad mix of health and lifestyle factors can influence the progression of the condition. Many people have diabetes for years without being aware they have the condition.

This causes a wide variation between the age of onset and age of diagnosis. Some estimates claim that one in four people with diabetes do not know they have it. Also, many national surveys and studies do not distinguish between rates of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in adults.

According to the Centers for Disease Control CDC , adults between 45 and 64 years of age receive the majority of new diabetes diagnoses in the U. The National Diabetes Statistics Report estimates that Elsewhere, a study found that the rates of type 2 diabetes were up to seven times higher in Chinese adults from 55 to 74 years old than they were in to year-olds.

Similarly, the ADA report that rates of diabetes remain high in the elderly population, impacting around In the U. The average age at which children receive a diagnosis is 14 years.

Differences between the chances of developing type 2 diabetes and the age of diagnosis may also depend on sex and race or ethnic background. The CDC note that from to , doctors diagnosed American men roughly 2 years earlier than women, and African Americans and Hispanics around 6 years earlier than white people. The ADA also note that diabetes impacts people of some races or ethnic backgrounds far more than others. Lifestyle factors, such as diet and physical activity levels, may be among the reasons for higher prevalence rates, but the research is still inconclusive.

Current rates of people in the U. Learn more about the risk factors for all types of diabetes here. The symptoms of type 2 diabetes, such as increased thirst, hunger, and fatigue , do not often present until complications develop. Taking steps to prevent diabetes is vital, as the time until a person becomes aware of it may advance the condition.

As the body ages, nutrition requirements change, and the risk of injury increases. However, type 2 diabetes is rising in incidence, attributed in part to poor lifestyle habits. A study published in the ADA Journal Diabetes Care considered the potential future number of diabetes cases in people under the age of The study found that, at current rates, the number of people under the age of 20 with type 2 diabetes could increase by up to 49 percent by If the rates of incidence increase, the number of type 2 cases in youth could quadruple.

Type 2 diabetes may result from a culmination of health issues and an unhealthy lifestyle. Specific factors can increase your personal risk , but an unhealthy lifestyle is the broader issue in many cases. Having a history of prediabetes is an important risk factor. But if you have high blood sugar, type 2 diabetes is possible. Leading a sedentary inactive lifestyle can increase your chances of developing diabetes.

So can being overweight or obese. The CDC estimates that Losing weight may delay or prevent the disease. For people under the age of 18, testing for diabetes should occur if the child is greater than the 85th percentile for weight or height or over percent of the ideal weight for their height. They should also have one of the following risk factors:. Despite the high rates of diagnosis, there are ways the disease may be delayed and even prevented.

Your best options include:. They found that losing 5 to 7 percent of your body weight can slow the development of type 2 diabetes.