Rates of type 2 diabetes are rising twice as fast in younger women compared to older women, driven by soaring obesity levels. New analysis by Diabetes UK reveals that diagnoses among women under 40 increased by 47% between 2017/18 and 2023/24, while those aged 40 to 79 saw only a 22% rise.
Obesity as a Key Driver
The charity highlights obesity as a significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes, a condition historically associated with older age. Obesity rates among women in the UK have nearly doubled from 16.4% in 1993 to 30% in 2024, meaning almost one in three women now live with obesity. Unmanaged type 2 diabetes can lead to severe complications such as heart attacks, strokes, blindness, and limb amputations.
Call for Better Postnatal Care
Diabetes UK attributes part of the rise to inadequate follow-up care for women who develop gestational diabetes (GD) during pregnancy. GD affects 10-20% of pregnant women and usually resolves after birth, but it significantly increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The charity has written to Women's Health Minister Baroness Merron, urging better postnatal support. Current guidelines recommend HbA1c blood tests for women with GD between 6 and 13 weeks after birth and annually thereafter. However, the first national gestational diabetes audit, published last year by NHS England, showed that only 57% of women received an annual HbA1c test after having GD. The audit also found that 11% of women with GD developed pre-diabetes within a year, and 15% developed type 2 diabetes within 10 years.
Colette Marshall, chief executive of Diabetes UK, described the figures as a wake-up call: 'Type 2 diabetes is rising twice as fast in younger women compared to older women, and a crucial opportunity for prevention is being missed. Every diagnosis is life-changing, but when it develops in younger people, type 2 diabetes is even more aggressive. Pregnancy shouldn't be a pathway to ill health. Yet despite facing a much higher risk of type 2 diabetes, too many women with GD receive little or no follow-up care after pregnancy.'
Undiagnosed Cases and Personal Stories
Around 4.7 million people in the UK are diagnosed with diabetes, but Diabetes UK estimates nearly 1.3 million have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes. Meg, 33, a teacher from Somerset, shared her experience: she was diagnosed with gestational diabetes in 2020 during her pregnancy but has never received a postnatal check-up regarding diabetes risks. 'I had gestational diabetes for the last two weeks of my pregnancy, before my son arrived prematurely at 29 weeks. I was given no information about my increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes and the steps I could take to prevent it. Having clear facts about what gestational diabetes means for you during and after pregnancy, and how to manage it, would have made me feel so much more supported.'
