More than 500 children with Type 2 diabetes - just 16 years after first ever case

From telegraph.co.uk

More than 500 children in England and Wales are now suffering from type 2 diabetes, just 16 years after the first reported case.
The figures in the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit have been branded a “wake-up call for the nation”, as the Government faces calls to tackle the rising levels of childhood obesity which is fueling the diabetes surge.
Unlike type 1 diabetes, type 2 is largely preventable and is closely linked to lifestyle, in particular diet.
Of the 533 cases of type 2 diabetes reported in the year 2014-15, eleven were in children aged nine or under.
The audit found that 95 percent of those diagnosed with type 2 diabetes were overweight, meaning a body-mass index of 25 to 29, and 83 percent obese, a BMI of 30 or above.
The condition, which usually beings in middle or older age, can cause serious long-term problems, the most of common of which is loss of vision.
Type 2 diabetes is also responsible for a high proportion of cases of kidney failure and lower limb amputation.
But data from the National Child Measurement Programme in 2014-15 found that ten percent of four and five-year-olds and 20 percent of 10 and 11-year-olds are currently obese.
Dr Just Warner, clinical lead for the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit, said: “The Government must act now before this becomes the norm.
“The long-awaited obesity strategy will go some way in doing this, however it must offer clear and bold solutions.
“This includes more research into prevention of obesity as well as making Personal, Social and Health Education a statutory subject in all schools covering the importance of physical activity and nutrition for a healthy lifestyle.
George Osborne announced a tax on sugar in his March budget, and the Government will lay out further measures to address overweight and unhealthy children in its forthcoming childhood obesity strategy, which is expected to be published this summer.
Local authorities have been responsible for public health awareness campaigns since 2013.
A spokesman for the Local Government Association said yesterday: "This is a wake-up call for the nation as the Government faces a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take game-changing action in its forthcoming Childhood Obesity Strategy.
“We cannot afford to delay any longer.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/15/more-than-500-children-with-type-2-diabetes---just-16-years-afte/