The percentage of people with diabetes has increased by 20% over the past seven years due to a lack of financial and social opportunities to change their eating behavior to healthier ones.
João Filipe Raposo, president of the Portuguese Diabetes Society, quoted by the SIC, said that 40% of Portuguese people have diabetes and are unaware of it, believing that the diagnosis is made late and worsens the prospects for the disease.
According to the National Diabetes Observatory, referenced by the SIC, it can be seen that from 2014 to 2021 the number of people with diabetes has increased by 20%.
Portugal is the third country in Europe with the highest percentage of people with diabetes, and overweight rates in children and young people are also among the highest in Europe.
Experts say prevention policies are not working and are demanding a new diabetes prevention strategy, saying behavior change is needed, but this is currently driven by rising food prices.