The total number of people with the disease worldwide hits 347 million
Based on new worldwide projections from researchers from Imperial College London and Harvard University, who looked at 2.7 million people worldwide, the total number of people with diabetes (all types) has likely risen from 153 million to 347 million, the BBC reports. They believe that 70 per cent of this rise is due to people living longer. The increase has been most pronounced in the Pacific Islands: in the Marshall Islands, for example, one-third of all women are now diabetic. The team looked at type 1 and type 2 diabetes, but researchers believe that most cases are type 2, which is linked to lifestyle and obesity. The U.S. has the highest rate of all developed nations.