England: distribution of individuals with type 2 diabetes 2020/21, by age

Type 2 diabetes is a condition that affects the amount of sugar in a person’s bloodstream and causes it to become too high. This type of diabetes can be caused by risk factors such as obesity and inactivity and, as shown in the table Type 2 diabetes is more common among older individuals than younger. In 2020/21, of those registered with type 2 diabetes in England, 43.3 percent were aged between 40 and 64 years.

Increasing prevalence of diabetes in England

In 2017/18, there were almost 3.2 million people in England who were diagnosed with diabetes. The number of individuals registered with diabetes in England has increased year-on-year since 2008. Overall, the number of people with diabetes has increased by 44 percent in the ten-year interval shown. The vast majority of those registered with diabetes in England are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, with over 3.2 million registered with type 2. There were approximately 256 thousand living with type 1 diabetes.

Diabetes medication

By far the most used drug in England for the treatment of diabetes was metformin hydrochloride with over 22.9 million items used in 2020 alone. Additionally, in 2018 approximately five percent of all prescribed drugs in primary care in England were for the treatment of diabetes. The share of prescribed diabetes drugs has steadily increased since 2005.