Type 2 diabetes costs the country NZ$2.1 billion a year and one in four Indigenous New Zealand and Pacific islanders will have the disease in 20 years, a report has indicated.
This would be a type 2 tidal wave in the opinion of some commentators, igniting the debate for a national diabetes strategy.
The report, conducted by Price Waterhouse Cooper and commissioned by several health groups including Diabetes New Zealand, details the economic and social cost of type 2 diabetes, which more and more young people are developing.
Advocacy Action: Does your county have a national (or regional) diabetes strategy? Is there a campaign you could assist or create for one? If you have one, could it be improved? A first port of call could be your national diabetes patient group who may be able to help you.