More than 29 million Americans have diabetes: CDC

Atlanta – One in four people with diabetes does not know he or she has the disease, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

More than 29 million Americans have diabetes, up from an estimated 26 million in 2010, CDC states. An additional 86 million U.S. adults have pre-diabetes, meaning their blood sugar levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be classified as type 2 diabetes.

CDC states that without weight loss and moderate physical activity, 15 to 30 percent of people with pre-diabetes will develop type 2 diabetes within five years.

The report, which was based on 2012 data, also found: 

  • 9.3 percent of people in the United States have diabetes.
  • 1.7 million people 20 or older were newly diagnosed with diabetes in 2012.
  • 208,000 people younger than 20 have been diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.