Diabetes
There are two main types of diabetes – Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is far more common than Type 1. In the UK, around 90% of all adults with diabetes have Type 2.
Every two minutes someone finds out that they have Type 2 diabetes. There are 3.9 million people living with diabetes in the UK. This figure has more than doubled since 1996, when there were 1.4 million. If current trends persist one in five people will develop Type 2 diabetes by 2025.
Currently more than 63,000 people in Lancashire have Type 2 diabetes (aged 17+) and more than 45,000 people in Lancashire are estimated to be at high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. The areas with the highest numbers of people living with Type 2 diabetes include Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool and East Lancashire.
Type 2 diabetes develops when your body can’t produce enough insulin, or when the insulin that is produced doesn’t work properly.
Diabetes can cause serious long-term health problems. It’s the most common cause of vision loss and blindness in people of working age. It is also responsible for most cases of kidney failure and lower limb amputation (other than accidents). People with diabetes are up to five times more likely to develop heart disease or have a stroke than those without diabetes.
It’s essential to be diagnosed as early as possible because Type 2 diabetes will get progressively worse if left untreated.
Early diagnosis may also reduce the risk of developing complications later on. It’s very important that you find out if you are at risk of Type 2 diabetes because then you can get support to lower your risk of, or even stop you, developing the condition. You may also be eligible to sign up for your local Healthier You service. The risk of Type 2 diabetes can be reduced significantly by reducing weight, increasing physical activity and improving diet.
Find out more about Type 2 diabetes here.
Risk factors
Type 2 diabetes risk factors:
• Your weight. You’re more at risk if you’re overweight, especially if you’re large around the middle
• Your age. You’re more at risk if you’re over 40 and white, or over 25 and African-Caribbean, Black-African, Chinese or South Asian
• Your family history. You’re two to six times more likely to get Type 2 diabetes if you have a parent, brother, sister or child with diabetes
• Your ethnicity. You’re more likely to get Type 2 diabetes if you’re Chinese, South Asian, African-Caribbean or Black-African
• Your blood pressure. You’re more at risk if you’ve ever had high blood pressure.
You’re also more at risk if:
• You’ve ever had a heart attack or stroke
• You’ve ever had schizophrenia, bipolar illness or depression, or if you are receiving treatment with anti-psychotic medication
• You’re a woman who’s had polycystic ovaries, gestational diabetes, or a baby weighing over 10 pounds.
You can’t change some of these risk factors. But others you can. The risk of Type 2 diabetes can be reduced significantly by reducing your weight, increasing the amount of physical activity that you do and improving your diet. The Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NHS DPP) can support you in taking action in all these areas. Making changes now can lower your risk or even stop you developing Type 2 diabetes.
Find out if you're at risk on the diabetes.org website (opens in new window).
Your local Healthier You service
The Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NHS DPP) can support you to better manage your health and reduce your risk of developing this very serious health condition.
People from Lancashire and South Cumbria who are at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes are being offered tailored support to avoid the potentially life-threatening condition.
Those who have been identified by their GP practice as being at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes will be able to access the local Healthier You service.
Reed Wellbeing is the provider who will deliver the programme, which is run collaboratively by NHS England, Public Health England and Diabetes UK.
People on the programme will get tailored, personalised help to reduce their risk. This will include education on healthy eating and lifestyle choices, reducing weight through bespoke physical exercise programmes and portion control, which together have been proven to reduce the risk of developing the disease.
Summer 2018 saw England become the first country to achieve universal coverage with such a programme. The latest evidence shows that the programme can have a major impact on peoples’ lives, and almost one million people have been referred to the programme since it was first launched in 2016, with participants who complete achieving an average weight loss of 3.3kg.
NDPP update – July 2022
Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS organisations have recently awarded a new contract to continue the NDPP service across the geography.
The contract has been awarded to Reed Wellbeing and they will take over the contract from 1st August 2022.
Reed Wellbeing can help you reduce your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Our expert-designed course is funded by the NHS and available free to you with a referral from your GP.
We’ll help you to make changes to your lifestyle that you can maintain and help you feel more energetic, healthier and more vibrant.
You can take our course either:
• Face-to-Face: In 13 friendly and supportive group sessions over nine months with a Health Coach
• Digital: On your phone or online using our app, plus regular contact from a Health Coach
• Remote: In 13 online video sessions with a Health Coach if you need additional support with access
There will be a period of transition while referrals and waiting lists are transferred between providers and the incoming Provider mobilises.
We aim to make this transition as smooth as possible, with minimal disruption to patients. If you have been referred on to the programme recently and are currently waiting to hear when your course will start, you will receive a letter explaining that the Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme in Lancashire and South Cumbria, which you have been referred to, will soon be run by a new provider, Reed Wellbeing. This means that they will be taking over responsibility for delivering the Healthier You programme in your area.
In order for us to provide continuity of care, we need your permission to share your records with Reed Wellbeing. This will allow you to remain on the programme without being discharged back to your GP.
If you are happy for us to share your records with the new provider, you must confirm this with us by 16th September 2022 by contacting us in one of the following ways:
• Phone – 0800 321 3150 or 0121 386 6971 (Mon-Fri 8:00am-6:30pm)
• Email – NDPPC@ingeus.co.uk
If we have not heard from you by 16th September 2022 your data will not be shared with Reed Wellbeing and we will discharge you back to your GP.
The Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (NHS DPP) identifies those at high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and refers them onto a behaviour change programme. The NHS DPP is a joint commitment from NHS England, Public Health England and Diabetes UK.
Watch Tom’s story
This animation follows Tom who has been told he is at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
It looks at how Tom can prevent the disease from developing and how he got the help and support he needed from the Healthier You: NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme.
Your Diabetes, Your Way
Do you have diabetes? Think you might be at risk of Type 2 diabetes? Want to find out about prevention or remission of Type 2 diabetes? Would like to know more for yourself, a family member or friend? Visit Your Diabetes Your Way for support, information and resources.
Here you will have access to: local group sessions and an interactive diabetes website with online resources to find out more about the condition supporting you to self-manage well, your risk and what you can do to reduce this as well as activities for all abilities in your local area.
Why should I find out more? Well, more than 100,000 people in Lancashire and South Cumbria have Type 2 diabetes (aged 17+) and more than 75,000 people are estimated to be at high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. But you can take steps to delay or even prevent Type 2 diabetes. With the average person spending 3.5 hours a year with a healthcare professional, diabetes is a long term medical condition that is mainly self-managed and knowing more will help you to take control of your condition and self-manage it effectively, whilst avoiding complications.
Remember, Type 2 diabetes is a serious condition. But your Type 2 diabetes is manageable, and lots of free support is available. You can learn with others in local Group Sessions, or learn on your own, at your own pace online. Or you can try both, just choose what works best for you.