Wales' diabetes crisis growing faster than expected, says Public Health Wales
The latest figures (2025) show that 230,371 people aged 17 and over in Wales are now living with diabetes - an increase of 7,685 people from the year before
The number of people living with diabetes in Wales is rising faster than previously projected, new data from NHS Wales has revealed.
The latest figures (2025) show that 230,371 people aged 17 and over in Wales are now living with diabetes — an increase of 7,685 people, or 3.5 per cent, in a single year (222,686 in 2024).
This rate of growth significantly outpaces projections made by Public Health Wales in 2021/22, which forecast that Wales would reach 260,000 – or one in 11 people diagnosed as living with diabetes by 2035. At current rates of growth, that milestone could arrive considerably earlier.
269,747 people in Wales are estimated to be living with prediabetes:
An estimated 58,906 people are living with undiagnosed Type 2 diabetes, unaware of the damage that may already be occurring.
In total, approximately one in five adults in Wales is currently living with diabetes or prediabetes.
Type 2 diabetes accounts for most cases. Left unmanaged, it can lead to serious complications including sight loss, kidney disease, nerve damage, and cardiovascular disease.
The condition disproportionately affects people living in areas of greater social and economic challenge and those from South Asian, Black African, and Black Caribbean backgrounds.
However, with early action, Type 2 diabetes can often be prevented entirely.
Alex Hicks, from Cardiff, was first diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in his early 30s. Having always been very active in his teenage years into his 20s, he experienced some lifestyle changes as his family grew and work pressures took up more of his time.
After a weekend stay in hospital, being kept under observation and receiving the formal diagnosis of type 2 diabetes, Alex made exercise a key part of his daily routine by cycling to work, in addition to changes to diet.
“I was in denial to start with"
Alex said:
“When the pandemic hit, my opportunities to exercise diminished overnight and I found myself working long hours from home and leading a more sedentary workstyle. Before I knew it, some of those symptoms had crept back, so I feared the worst and after a visit to GP and a blood test, it showed my blood sugars were high again.”
“I was in denial to start with, because I was quite disappointed having managed my condition so well for over ten years. I had to have a reset to work out how I was going to manage it this time as it was a lot more stubborn than before and I was quickly on the maximum dosage of metformin.”
Public Health Wales and Diabetes UK Cymru are coming together to urge people across Wales to further information and support on a range of services that can help lower their risk of Type 2 diabetes.