The Asian diabetes phenotypes: Challenges and opportunities

Asia is home to two-thirds of the world's population, where the two most populous countries of India and China are undergoing rapid socioeconomic, technological, and cultural transitions. While these transitions have alleviated poverty, they have come with considerable health consequences [ [1] Chan J.C. Cho N.H. Tajima N. et al. Diabetes in the western pacific region – past, present and future. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2013; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diabres.2013.11.012 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Scopus (65) Google Scholar ]. Among the 382 million people affected with diabetes in 2013, over 200 million come from Asia, including four of the top ten countries with the most cases of diabetes: China, India, Indonesia and Japan [ [1] Chan J.C. Cho N.H. Tajima N. et al. Diabetes in the western pacific region – past, present and future. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2013; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diabres.2013.11.012 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Scopus (65) Google Scholar ]. The severity of this problem is best illustrated in China, where the most recent national study found that 12% of people were reported to have diabetes and 50% were reported to have prediabetes [ [2] Xu Y. Wang L. He J. et al. Prevalence and control of diabetes in chinese adults. J Am Med Assoc. 2013; 310: 948-959 Crossref PubMed Scopus (2269) Google Scholar ]. Of particular concern is how diabetes is affecting younger people in Asia where the largest number of people with diabetes are aged 40–59 years old, compared to Europe where most people with diabetes are over 60 years old (Fig. 1) [ [3] International Diabetes Federation IDF diabetes atlas. 6th ed. IDF, Brussels2013 Google Scholar ].