Diabetes on the rise amongst American Indians

A diabetes conference in Oklahoma City is set to address the dire state of type 2 diabetes amongst the American Indian population.
Diabetes is rife amongst Native Americans, with the highest recorded incidence amongst any racial group globally. Health officials maintain that there is still time to avert the problem, however.
American Indian health specialists from all over America will gather together for a four-day long diabetes prevention conference this week. Tribal leaders and health professionals will join them.
Research and experts on the matter claim that lifestyle changes including exercise, weight loss and diet changes all have an impact on diabetes risk. The problem is enormously significant, with an estimated 50 per cent of non-white people born in 2000 expected to develop diabetes.
The Oklahoma Native American Export Centre and the Indian Health Service sponsor the conference.
The figures and attempts to rectify the situation raise alarming questions about the state of type 2 diabetes amongst different ethnic groups. Are these attempts at prevention too little, too late? The balance between awareness and a future healthcare disaster continues to waver.