New MEPS data show a relationship between diabetes, obesity, and chronic disease

In 2001, about 12.4 million Americans age 18 and older not living in institutions had been told by a physician that they had diabetes, according to data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). Medical research has shown that the increase in diabetes is linked to the obesity epidemic in this country.

Other data from MEPS show that:

• In 2000, over $18 billion was spent on health care for people with diabetes.
• In 2001, adults with diabetes were more than three times as likely to be extremely obese (body mass index—or BMI—greater than or equal to 40) as adults without diabetes, and over one-and-a-half times as likely to be obese (BMI of 30.0-39.9).
• Adults with diabetes were about one-and-a-half times as likely as adults without diabetes to have asthma, nearly three times as likely to have hypertension, more than three times as likely to have heart disease, and more than four times as likely to have a stroke.

Select to access MEPS data in a Statistical Brief that includes bar charts (PDF Help).

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