Credit: www.sciencemediacentre.co.nz

The rate of type 1 diabetes has increased substantially among elementary school-age white children in the United States, a new study shows.

The study of young white people found nearly 6,000 new cases diagnosed in teens and kids ages 19 and younger between 2002 and 2009. Youngsters between 5 and 9 years old accounted for most new cases, while no increase was seen among kids younger than 4, the authors said. Boys were slightly more affected than girls.

Type 1 diabetes — previously called juvenile diabetes — is the predominant form of diabetes diagnosed in childhood. People with the disease lose their ability to produce insulin, a hormone needed to convert food into energy for daily life.

“The incidence has been rising in many other countries, particularly in Europe, but data from large populations in the U.S. were limited,” said the study’s lead author, Jean Lawrence, of the Kaiser Permanente Southern California department of research and evaluation.

More research is needed to better understand why the prevalence of type 1 diabetes among American children is on the rise, and what racial and ethnic differences exist, […]