Diabetics' death rate for females stalled

New research has revealed that though the death rate for U.S. men with diabetes has fallen sharply since the early 1970s, for women that is not the case.

As an increasing number of people are diagnosed with diabetes the researchers say it is clear that women are not making the same progress as men.

Diabetes is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States and significantly raises a persons risk of heart disease.

People with diabetes have a higher risk of dying earlier than people without the disease but improvements in diabetic care in the last 35 years, along with efforts to maintain tight control of blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure levels, have improved the situation.

More routine use of flu and pneumonia vaccines and regular exams of eyes feet and teeth, as well as new and more effective drug treatments have also had an effect.

The study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tracked as many as 27,000 people ages 35 to 74 in three national databases during three time periods running from 1971 to 2000.

The researchers found that death rates from all causes for men with diabetes dropped from 42.6 per 1,000 people annually from 1971 to 1986, to 24.4 per 1,000 in the period from 1988 to 2000 and deaths from the biggest killer of diabetics, cardiovascular disease, fell dramatically.

For female diabetics the death rate from all causes was 18.4 per 1,000 during the 1971 to 1986 period, then fell to 15.1 per 1,000 during an intermediate 1976 to 1992 period before hitting 25.9 per 1,000 during the 1988 to 2000 period.

The researchers suspect women may not be getting the same care for heart disease as men and may not receive the same comprehensive preventive treatment for cardiovascular risk factors; they say whether different approaches are needed to improve health outcomes for women with diabetes needs to be explored.

Dr. Edward Gregg, an epidemiologist and acting chief of the Epidemiology and Statistics Branch of the Division of Diabetes Translation at CDC, says the trends in death rates among the male diabetic population is very encouraging and suggests men with diabetes have a 40 percent lower mortality rate than they did 30 years ago.

Dr. Gregg, the lead author of the study, says the death rates for men were initially much higher than for the women, but by 2000 were virtually the same.

Diabetes causes the body to stop producing or properly using insulin, a hormone necessary to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy and it is a leading cause of heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure and amputations.

It has become increasingly common worldwide as more and more people become obese; according to the American Diabetes Association 20.8 million U.S. children and adults now have diabetes - that equates to 7 percent of the population.

The most common form Type 2 diabetes usually appears after age 40 in overweight, sedentary people, but a growing number of younger people and sometimes children are developing it.

The American College of Physicians suggests women ensure they have their blood sugar, cholesterol levels and blood pressure checked regularly by a doctor in order to maintain tight control of the key markers of diabetes and heart health.

Smokers are urged to quit and a healthy diet with fewer carbohydrates, sweets and starches that affect blood sugar levels is recommended, along with regular physical exercise.

The study is published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.