By Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS, January 15, 2009, abstracted from “Comparison of prognosis for men with type 2 diabetes mellitus and men with cardiovascular disease” in the Canadian Medical Association Journal

Diabetes now affects 24 million Americans. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S and costs our healthcare system $174 billion each year. Diabetics have a 200-400% increased risk of stroke and double the overall risk of death, compared to those without diabetes of similar age. Diabetes can lead to permanent disability, debilitation, and numerous health complications that include heart disease, stroke, blindness, chronic kidney disease, and amputations (1).

Heart disease affects 870,000 Americans, is the #1 cause of death in the U.S., and costs our healthcare system over $287 billion each year (2). Now a new study (3) has found that having diabetes may increase your risk of heart disease by more than 300%.

In the study, data was analyzed from the Quebec Cardiovascular Study (4) which followed 4,376 men from Quebec, Canada. The men were 35 to 64 years of age, did not have cardiovascular disease in 1974 and they were followed until 1998. The researchers found that death due to cardiovascular causes occurred in nearly 1 in 4 men with diabetes versus 1 in 14 men without diabetes (23.4% vs. 6.9%) Death from any cause occurred in a little less than half of men with diabetes versus a little less than one-quarter of controls (43.8% vs. 22.3%). The researchers then computed that this led to a 311% increased risk of heart disease for men with diabetes versus controls.

For the researchers, “the burden of cardiovascular disease is likely increasing because of the continuing rise in the number of people newly diagnosed with or at high risk of diabetes” and that “these findings underscore the importance of optimal management [diabetes] and its associated cardiovascular conditions, as well as the importance of pursuing research to prevent type 2 diabetes altogether.”

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Danville, CA. You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at mailto:PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.CompleteChiropracticHealthcare.com

Reference:
1. “Number of People with Diabetes Continues to Increase” from the CDC Website www.cdc.gov/Features/DiabetesFactSheet/
2. Dagenaise GR. Comparison of prognosis for men with type 2 diabetes mellitus and men with cardiovascular disease. CMAJ 2009; 180 (1). 40-47 doi:10.1503/cmaj.071027
3. “Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention” Addressing the Nation's Leading Killers: At A Glance 2008” posted on www.cdc.gov/NCCDPHP/publications/AAG/dhdsp.htm
4. Dagenais GR, Robitaille NM, Lupien PJ, et al. First coronary heart disease event rates in relation to major risk factors: Québec Cardiovascular Study. Can J Cardiol 1990;6:274-80