Doctors in the UAE have highlighted the need for early diabetes screening for children to boost long-term health, after new research revealed a surge in cases among young people.
A comprehensive study carried out in the US found the number of cases of Type 2 diabetes among those aged under 20 increased tenfold, from 2.37 per 100,000 in 2002 to 22.30 per 100,000 in 2023.
The 20-year study by the Colorado Diabetes Registry will be presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Milan, Italy in September.
Experts used diagnosis codes, laboratory results and medication data across health systems. While the incidence of Type 1 diabetes increased only slightly, the number diagnosed with lifestyle-related Type 2 diabetes soared.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition in which the pancreas produces no insulin, requiring patients to take regular insulin shots. Type 2, often linked to obesity, occurs when the body does not produce enough insulin. It is not typically diagnosed in patients aged over 45 but is on the rise among younger populations.
Symptoms for diabetes include fatigue, weight loss, excessive thirst and blurred vision.
Dr Brijesh Bharadwaj, department head at NMC Royal Hospital DIP, Dubai, backed the idea of early screening to offer more effective treatment.
Call for action
“Type 2 diabetes is shifting to younger ages,” he said. “In the UAE, regional genetic factors increase this risk, making early screening and lifestyle changes vital before symptoms appear.
“The American Diabetes Association advises screening children starting at age 10 or after puberty if they are overweight and have risk factors. This early identification allows a diabetes specialist to assess the child and consider appropriate treatment.”
Raising the alarm
The study’s lead author, Dr Tessa Crume of the Colorado School of Public Health, said results signalled a worrying trend for young people.
"A generation ago, Type 2 diabetes in a teenager was so rare that many paediatric clinicians could go through much of their career without seeing a case; it was a disease of middle age,“ said Dr Crume. “We have now watched it rise nearly tenfold in young people in just two decades, and the increase is accelerating rather than slowing.“
Dr Crume said the Colorado results were not a local anomaly. In the US-based Search for Diabetes in Youth study, researchers found Type 2 diabetes in young people was climbing more than twice as fast as Type 1.
Among older teenagers, new cases of Type 2 also outpaced diagnoses of Type 1, which is an autoimmune disease that prevents insulin production.
"The danger is considerable, and it is why these trends matter so much,” said Dr Crume. “Type 2 diabetes in a young person is a more aggressive disease than the same diagnosis in a middle-aged adult.“
Long-term complications
Among younger people, the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas decline faster and blood sugar is harder to control. Complications can affect the kidneys, eyes, nerves and can cause heart disease, appearing within just a few years rather than decades.
A child diagnosed at 14 faces the prospect of these complications in early adulthood, and youth-onset Type 2 diabetes is associated with a shortened life expectancy.
Dr Yasmeen Ajaz, a consultant endocrinologist at Medcare Hospital in Al Safa, Dubai, said they are increasingly seeing Type 2 diabetes develop in younger people.
“There is no single reason for this,” he said. "The rise is closely linked to changes in lifestyle and the wider environment, including increasing rates of childhood overweight and obesity, diets high in processed foods and sugary drinks, and lower levels of physical activity. Long periods spent on screens and insufficient sleep may also contribute to metabolic health.”
Family history and genetics can increase a child’s susceptibility, but they are only part of the picture.
Heightened health risk
Developing Type 2 diabetes at a younger age means a person may live with the condition for many more years, increasing potential complications.
“The broader trend is certainly relevant to the UAE and the wider region, where childhood obesity and related metabolic health concerns are important public-health issues,” said Dr Ajaz. “However, it is important not to directly apply figures from a US study to the UAE, as populations, healthcare systems and risk factors can differ.
“What we can say is that the factors associated with type two diabetes in young people – including excess weight, sedentary lifestyles, dietary patterns and family history – are also seen in our region.
“This makes it important for healthcare professionals and families to remain alert to metabolic risk in children and teenagers, rather than assuming diabetes is only an adult condition.”
In the UAE, a joint study in 2019 by Zayed Military Hospital and UAE University’s College of Medicine and Health Sciences found diabetes in almost five per cent of 33,327 Emirati men aged under 30.
Of those, 7,720 subjects (24.4 per cent) were overweight and 8,835 (28 per cent) were obese.
The most recent data reported by the International Diabetes Federation in 2024 suggest around 20 per cent of the UAE population now has the condition, or around 1.2 million people.
Genetics, family history and maternal diabetes can contribute to diabetes in young people, while puberty naturally increases insulin resistance, which can trigger diabetes earlier in high-risk adolescents.
Dr Amna Kiran Sarwar, a specialist endocrinologist at International Modern Hospital Dubai, said the UAE’s high obesity rates were a considerable factor.
“Children with obesity plus additional risk factors should be screened for prediabetes and diabetes,” she said. “Type 2 diabetes is no longer exclusively a disease of middle and older age. The major concern is that children diagnosed in their teens may live with diabetes for decades, increasing their lifetime risk of cardiovascular, kidney, eye and nerve complications.”
Blood tests
Healthcare professionals search for diabetes via tests such as fasting blood glucose, HbA1c or an oral glucose tolerance test to assess blood sugar levels.
For young people diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, lifestyle changes remain an important part of management, but some may may also require medication depending on their blood glucose levels and overall health.
