Most Widely Cited Source For Diabetes Statistics In the United States
Most news outlets and diabetes organizations in the United States, including the American Diabetes Association, rely on the CDC for their diabetes statistics. CDC is an acronym that stands for the "Center For Disease Control and Prevention" and it falls under the Department of Health and Human Services which is a federal agency.
The CDC derives its diabetes statistics from several databases maintained by different departments of the federal government such as the National Institutes of Health and the Indian Health Service. They also rely on various grand scale health surveys funded by the federal government such as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) and the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). They compile lots of other information too such as published research studies. You can basically think of the CDC as a federally funded clearinghouse for all diabetes statistics available in the United States.
I've noticed many news outlets and diabetes information sources on the internet incorrectly crediting the American Diabetes Association (ADA) with diabetes statistics compiled by and published by the CDC. If you read the ADA's literature and their website, it is easy to understand why this happens. It is written and re-packaged in such a way as the reader might think they generated the statistical data on diabetes themselves. This simply isn't true and I encourage all readers to very carefully consider the original source of any diabetes statistics you see.
Good Source For International Diabetes Statistics
The International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) publishes very detailed international diabetes statistics. The IDF pull their data from many sources. They are actually an umbrella organization for more than 200 diabetes organizations from more than 160 countries. They have non-profit partners, academic partners, and commercial partners.
Diabetes Statistics From Universities and From Other Academic Studies
Studies conducted by academics at universities and in other academic settings are a mixed bag from the perspective of reliability. Before accepting the results of an academic study, it is important that you very carefully study how these studies were funded. It used to be the case that most health related academic studies were funded primarily by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Nowadays, however, academic studies are increasingly funded by industry interests. In fact, some industries have set up their own research facilities that sound so much like an academic institution that many people get fooled by their cleverly but deceptively named organization.
You also have to look very closely the detailed results of an academic study. The popular press often over simplifies a complex and mixed result in an effort to make it more digestible for their readers. They also sometimes, unfortunately, only pick out one part to create a more sensationalistic headline. Sometimes the details are necessary to understand what is really going on.
Be Wary of Diabetes Statistics Obviously Derived From Commercial Interests
If a study is funded by a pharmaceutical company that produces diabetes medications for massive profit, you probably want to take the results of such a study with a grain of salt to say the least. You need to also consider how various diabetes associations that on the surface might seem like an advocate for diabetics are actually funded. Do their publications contain ads for pharmaceutical companies and diabetic supply companies? Does their website also contain these types of commercial advertisements? If so, be wary. They also might be using diabetes statistics simply as a method to "scare" their members and others into donating more money.
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