Is diabetes leading cause of death in the US? No, it isn’t the leading cause but it is consistently in the top ten. In 2009, it was the seventh leading cause of death. And untold thousands more have died sooner than they would have without being diabetic. One study in Britain estimates that a 50 year old person with diabetes will die on average six years sooner than a non-diabetic.  To put that in some kind of context that might make it easier to understand, a long-time smoker will shorten their lifespan by 10 years.

 

What are some Ways That Diabetes Can Kill You?

 

  • Diabetes leading cause of death #1 – Stroke is caused by damage to the arteries and veins
  • Diabetes leading cause of death #2 – Heart attack
  • Diabetes leading cause of death #3 – embolism
  • Diabetes leading cause of death #4 – Kidney failure
  • Diabetes leading cause of death #5 – Hypoglycemia leading to Diabetic coma

 

What is the Racial Breakdown of Diagnosed Diabetes?

 

Since diabetes is a leading cause of death, it is important to know if you are more at risk so you can take some precautions to prevent it. A good healthy lifestyle and diet will help you avoid Type 2 diabetes. Some races are more likely to develop diabetes than others. So what does the racial breakdown look like? This is the percentage of the following racial groups that are diagnosed with diabetes:

  • 7.1% of non-Hispanic whites
  • 8.4% of Asian Americans
  • 12.6% of non-Hispanic blacks
  • 11.8% of Hispanics

 

And among Hispanics, the rates look like this:

  • 7.6% for Cubans
  • 13.3% for Mexican Americans
  • 13.8% for Puerto Ricans.

 

What are some of the Complications of Diabetes That Don’t Necessarily Cause Death?

 

  • High Blood Pressure – In diabetics over the age of 20, 67% of them have blood pressure over 140/90 mmHg or used medications to control their blood pressure.
  • Blindness – Diabetes is the number one cause of new blindness cases in adults between the ages of 20 – 74 years old.
  • Kidney disease – The leading cause of kidney failure is diabetes. About 44% of kidney failure is associated with diabetes.
  • Amputation – Over 60% of non-injury amputations happen in people with diabetes. In 2006, over 65,000 amputations were performed on diabetics.

 

As it is plain to see, diabetes is a serious disease. The good news is that most of the complications and death can be avoided if taken seriously. Control your diabetes by natural methods first, and if necessary with insulin. But don’t ever ignore it, or it will kill you!