Three in five with diabetes in the North West experience emotional or mental health problems

Diabetes UK

New research from Diabetes UK has found that three out of five people living with diabetes in the region experience emotional or mental health problems as a result of their condition.

In a survey carried out by Diabetes UK, 800 people of different ages, ethnicities and backgrounds from across the North West shared their experiences living with diabetes today, and what their hopes and fears were for the future.

How diabetes affects emotional wellbeing stood out as a major factor for respondents, with three in five people (63.7%) saying that they often or sometimes feel down because of their diabetes. A third of people (32.8%) said that diabetes got in the way of them or a family member doing things they wanted to do. Alarmingly, less than a third of people (31.5%) said they definitely felt in control of their diabetes.

The research also found that 15% of respondents had used support or counselling from a trained professional to help them manage their diabetes, and nearly 34 per cent had at some point relied on self-help materials including books, videos and resources found online.

The results of this research are included in Diabetes UK’s Future of Diabetes report, which is launching at an event today in Parliament to mark World Diabetes Day (14 November).

The charity is urging the Government to radically improve health outcomes for people with diabetes by committing to sustain transformation funding at current levels of £44 million, until at least 2021.

Stephen Ryan, Diabetes UK’s Head of the North said: “Diabetes affects more than 4.5 million people in the UK, and is the fastest-growing health crisis of our time. It can lead to heart disease, stroke, kidney failure and lower limb amputations. This new research brings to light the isolation that can come from managing an invisible condition, and how detrimental living with diabetes can be to a person’s emotional wellbeing without the right support.

“Effective diabetes care requires that a person’s emotional needs are taken into account alongside their physical care needs. We want to see a system where specialist support – from people who understand diabetes – is made available to those who need it.

“In order to achieve that, we need to see sustained funding of £44 million for the diabetes transformation programme, which sets out to improve the treatment and care for people with diabetes. Investing now will not only allow us to reap substantial financial and social benefits in the future, but more importantly it will help people to live well with diabetes today.”