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Massive rise in diabetes threatens to crush NHS

A HUGE rise in diabetes “threatens to bring down the NHS,” charity Diabetes UK warned yesterday.

Cases in England and Wales have risen by 59.8 per cent in the past decade, with an additional 1.2 million adults now living with the condition.

The figures, extracted from NHS data and analysed by the charity, show that 3,333,069 people have been diagnosed with the disease.

Diabetes UK warned that there was an urgent need for effective care for sufferers, while more had to be done to highlight the importance of prevention.

Poorly managed diabetes can lead to “devastating and expensive health complications” including amputations and strokes.

Diabetes UK head Barbara Young said that diabetes already costs the NHS nearly £10 billion a year, 80 per cent of which is spent on managing avoidable complications.

The charity predicted that if current trends continue, five million people will have diabetes by 2025.

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