Type 1 diabetes in children

There are approximately 29,000 children and young people with diabetes in the UK, of which about 26,500 have type 1; 500 have type 2; and 2000 have an unrecorded diagnosis¹. Type 1 diabetes is the leading type of diabetes in children of all ages and the number diagnosed with the condition is rising by approximately 4 per cent each year.²

The peak age for diagnosis is between 10 and 14, but onset of the condition can occur at any age and an increasing number of younger children are being diagnosed. According to Diabetes UK, of those children who are newly diagnosed, about 25 per cent are not diagnosed until they are in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). This figure rises to 35 per cent in children under 5 years.³