Slightly higher blood sugar levels increase the risk of heart disease

According to British researchers, men with blood sugar levels below the diabetes threshold are at a 30% increased risk of the disease, and women are at even greater risk.

The link between the two conditions has long been known, but recent studies suggest that even in the absence of diabetes, slightly higher blood sugar levels increase the risk of coronary heart problems.

In the European Union, more than 32 million people live with diabetes, a figure which has doubled over the last decade. This increase is partly explained by the increase in the number of overweight people, notably an increase in obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.

Diabetes is a serious chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin (the hormone that regulates blood sugar levels) or when the body does not properly use the insulin it produces. .

Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, strokes and lower limb amputation. A healthy diet, physical activity, medications, regular screening and treatment of complications make it possible to treat diabetes and avoid or delay the consequences it can have.

World Diabetes Day was established in 1991 at the initiative of the International Diabetes Federation and the World Health Organization (WHO). It is celebrated each year on November 14, the birthday of Canadian doctor and scientist Frederick Banting (1891-1941), who discovered insulin with his colleague Charles Best in 1922. World Diabetes Day has become an official day of the United Nations in 2006, with the adoption of resolution A/RES/61/225 by the UN General Assembly.

By this resolution, the General Assembly encourages Member States to develop national policies for the prevention and treatment of diabetes and patient care that are compatible with the sustainable development of their healthcare systems, taking into account the objectives of internationally agreed development.