Worrying rise in number of children with type 2 diabetes

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The numbers treated at paediatric diabetes units in England and Wales have risen by 50 percent, from 621 to 973, over five years from 2015-16.

And the pandemic led to the biggest increase in child obesity since records began in 2006, something Diabetes

UK says is particularly worrying after the Government recently snubbed planned junk food curbs.

Its chief executive Chris Askew said: “We are very concerned that this spike in childhood obesity will translate into an even greater increase in children with type 2 diabetes in the coming years, a crisis fuelled by longstanding health inequalities.”

The proportion of children aged four to five considered obese jumped from 9.85 percent to 14.44 percent in the last year, according to NHS data.

Children who develop type 2 diabetes are in danger of more severe consequences than adults.

Boris Johnson last month scrapped a ban on buy-one-get-one-free deals for unhealthy foods and a 9pm watershed for adverts.Diabetes UK called for the decision to be reversed.

The Department of Health and Social Care said: “We are taking urgent action to halve childhood obesity by 2030. Since 2016 the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme has helped over a million people receive support for healthy behavioural changes to avoid type 2 diabetes.”

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