Among wealthy countries, US diabetes and poverty rates are both highest. Coincidence?

The United States has the highest rate of adult diabetes (aged 20-79) among wealthy countries. With more than one in ten adults suffering from diabetes, this is about double the rate at which citizens in other wealthy countries contract the disease. 

As pubic health research would expect,¹ the country suffering the highest incidence of diabetes also suffers the highest rate of poverty. Using one OECD measure,² nearly 18 percent of Americans are poor.

America is in the red on diabetes in part because we are also in the red on poverty. The correlation is strongest in the US. But countries including Japan, Canada, and Portugal exhibit similar patterns. Similarly, many European countries with low rates of poverty enjoy diabetes rates under 5 percent.

To put these data into greater context, check out Part 5 of The Bargain.

1. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/diacare/41/5/929.full.pdf
2. The proportion of society that earns less than half of median (50^th percentile) household income.