Written by: euronews
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A research team including experts from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and the Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU Vienna) calculated the global economic cost to Diabetes For countries.
This disease was chosen as it is chronic and one of the most widespread in the world, affecting one in ten adults, which poses an increasing challenge to health care systems and countries’ economies.
The study, which was conducted at the level of 204 countries within a certain period of time, revealed that providing health care for diabetes patients costs the world about 10 trillion US dollars annually, equivalent to 0.2% of the annual gross domestic product.
When informal care is included, the costs reach US$152 trillion, or 1.7% of global GDP.
In this context, Klaus Breitner, an economist at the University of Vienna, one of the authors of the study, says: “Caregivers often leave the labor market partially, which creates additional economic costs.”
The researcher attributes the high percentage of informal care, which represents between 85% and 90% of the total economic burden, to the fact that the number of people with diabetes exceeds the number of deaths resulting from it at a rate ranging between 30 and 50 times.
Cost by country
Although diabetes is more common in low-income countries, US The highest costs related to its treatment, followed by China and India.
“The Czech Republic has the highest GDP burden at 0.5%, followed by the United States and Germany at 0.4%, and Ireland, Monaco and Bermuda have the highest per capita cost, at $18,000, $12,000 and $8,000, respectively,” notes co-author Michael Cohen, acting leader of the Economic Frontiers Research Group at IIASA.
The study shows that one of the main differences between high- and low-income countries lies in the distribution of the burden between treatment costs and workforce loss, as treatment costs represent 41% of the economic burden (excluding informal care) in high-income countries compared to only 14% in low-income countries.
“This clearly shows that medical treatment regimens for chronic diseases such as diabetes are available,” Cohen comments For high-income countries only”.
Diabetes during the Corona pandemic
The study also showed that diabetes was one of the main factors for increasing death rates resulting from diabetes Covid-19. During the crisis, the economic burden rose from 0.16% to 0.22% of GDP for China, from 0.4% to 0.65% for the United States, and from 0.4% to 0.45% for Germany.
“Previous estimates of the costs of diabetes were often based on overly simplistic assumptions and tended to ignore economic dynamics,” Breitner commented. “But this research takes into account labor market influences, such as absence from work due to caring responsibilities. It also recognizes that health care spending does not necessarily reduce economic output, but rather often represents a shift from consumer spending to health sector spending.”
Prevention methods
Compared to other diseases such as Alzheimer’s, dementia and cancer, the study indicates that the economic impact of diabetes is huge, but it confirms that “the most effective way to prevent diabetes and reduce its economic impact is to promote healthy lifestyles,” as regular physical activity with a balanced diet can significantly reduce the risk of developing the disease.
Early detection also plays a crucial role, through comprehensive screening programs for the entire population, and rapid diagnosis and early treatment of individuals who display symptoms or risk factors.
“Such measures are particularly important for low-income countries, where high rates of non-diagnosis and increased deaths from infectious diseases make diabetes a severe risk factor for the stability of health care systems,” Cohen concludes.