Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 Mar 1;46(3):490-499.
doi: 10.2337/dci22-0046.

Youth-Onset Type 2 Diabetes: The Epidemiology of an Awakening Epidemic

Wei Perng  1   2 , Rebecca Conway  1   2 , Elizabeth Mayer-Davis  3 , Dana Dabelea  1   2   4
Affiliations
Review

Youth-Onset Type 2 Diabetes: The Epidemiology of an Awakening Epidemic

Wei Perng et al. Diabetes Care. .

Abstract

In this narrative review, we describe the epidemiology (prevalence, incidence, temporal trends, and projections) of type 2 diabetes among children and adolescents (<20 years), focusing on data from the U.S. and reporting global estimates where available. Secondarily, we discuss the clinical course of youth-onset type 2 diabetes, from prediabetes to complications and comorbidities, drawing comparisons with youth type 1 diabetes to highlight the aggressive course of this condition, which, only recently, has become recognized as a pediatric disease by health care providers. Finally, we end with an overview of emerging topics in type 2 diabetes research that have potential to inform strategies for effective preventive action at the community and individual levels.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Duality of Interest. No potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article were reported.

Figures

None
Graphical abstract
Figure 1
Figure 1
Global prevalence of type 2 diabetes among children and adolescents (age <20 years), per 100,000.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Global incidence of type 2 diabetes among children and adolescents (age <20 years), per 100,000.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Temporal trends and APC in incidence of type 2 diabetes among multiethnic U.S. youth in the SEARCH study from 2002 to 2015. APC estimates for all youth are adjusted for age, sex, race, and ethnicity; estimates within racial and ethnic strata are adjusted for age and sex. Created from data reported in Mayer-Davis et al. (15) and Divers et al. (6).
Figure 4
Figure 4
A conceptual diagram of multilevel risk factors for youth-onset type 2 diabetes.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Cowie CC, Casagrande SS, Menke A, et al.., Eds. Diabetes in America. Bethesda, MD, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, 2018 - PubMed
    1. Pinhas-Hamiel O, Dolan LM, Daniels SR, Standiford D, Khoury PR, Zeitler P. Increased incidence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus among adolescents. J Pediatr 1996;128:608–615 - PubMed
    1. Dabelea D, Hanson RL, Bennett PH, Roumain J, Knowler WC, Pettitt DJ. Increasing prevalence of type II diabetes in American Indian children. Diabetologia 1998;41:904–910 - PubMed
    1. Fagot-Campagna A, Pettitt DJ, Engelgau MM, et al. . Type 2 diabetes among North American adolescents: an epidemiologic health perspective. J Pediatr 2000;136:664–672 - PubMed
    1. Divers J, Mayer-Davis EJ, Lawrence JM, et al. . Trends in incidence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes among youths–selected counties and Indian reservations, United States, 2002–2015. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2020;69:161–165 - PMC - PubMed

Publication types