As public health officials strive to lower the incidence of type 2 diabetes in young individuals, new evidence suggests that preventing COVID-19 infection could be a vital strategy.
A recent study indicates that adolescents and teenagers are significantly more likely to receive a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes within six months after contracting COVID-19, compared to peers diagnosed with other respiratory infections. This research, conducted by Case Western Reserve University in Ohio, builds on earlier studies that established a connection between COVID-19 and diabetes in adults.
Published in JAMA Network Open, the study analyzed electronic health records from 613,602 individuals aged 10 to 19 who had either COVID-19 or another respiratory illness between 2020 and 2022. The analysis focused solely on those who had not previously been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Participants were evenly split, with half diagnosed with COVID-19 and the other half with illnesses such as influenza or pneumonia.
The findings reveal a concerning trend: the risk of a new diabetes diagnosis rose steadily from one month to six months following a COVID-19 diagnosis, with those infected being over 50% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who experienced other respiratory infections.
“This is a significant increase,” stated Dr. Pauline Terebuh, an epidemiologist and the study’s lead author, in an interview with The Washington Post. “A diagnosis of diabetes in childhood means a long-term chronic condition for these individuals.”
The heightened risk persisted even among overweight and obese adolescents, underscoring the broader implications of these findings. Most participants in the study did not require hospitalization; however, those hospitalized due to COVID-19 exhibited a threefold increased risk of being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes compared to the more than 22,000 hospitalized for other respiratory infections.
A critical limitation of the study is its inability to assess the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on diabetes risk. The researchers noted this gap, emphasizing that about 50% of individuals under 18 had received at least one vaccine dose by mid-November 2022. Survey data indicated that parents’ main concerns regarding vaccination included potential side effects and a general mistrust of the vaccine.
Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder with no cure, leading to dangerously elevated blood sugar levels and associated with numerous severe health complications over a lifetime. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) forecasts a staggering rise in diabetes cases among those under 20, predicting an increase of at least 70% by 2060. This figure could surge to as high as 700% if trends similar to those from 2002 to 2017 continue.
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