Home > Journals > Indian Journal of Preventive Medicine

Indian Journal of Preventive Medicine

Submit your article Read this Journals View all journals
Full Text (PDF)
Short Communication

Young Onset Type 2 Diabetes in India: A Growing Preventive Challenge

Jyoti Prakash, Kumar Harshvardhan, Surabhi Kumari

Author Information

Licence:

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.

Indian Journal of Preventive Medicine 14(1):p 30-32, January-June 2026. | DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijpm.2321.5917.14126.4

How Cite This Article:

Jyoti Prakash, Kumar Harshvardhan, Surabhi Kumari. Young Onset Type 2 Diabetes in India: A Growing Preventive Challenge. J Prev Med. 2026; 14(1): 30-32.

Timeline

Received : December 10, 2025         Accepted : January 14, 2026          Published : June 30, 2026

Abstract

India is experiencing a rapid rise in young-onset type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), with a growing proportion of new cases occurring below 40 years of age. Compared with later onset disease, young onset T2DM follows a more aggressive course with earlier complications and longer lifetime exposure to hyperglycaemia. This trend is largely driven by rising childhood and adolescent obesity, physical inactivity, unhealthy diets, excessive screen time, and psychosocial stress. A large hidden burden of prediabetes among young adults further reflects missed opportunities for early prevention. Although national programs offer scope for screening and counselling, their reach among adolescents and young working populations remains limited. Strengthening early, life course based prevention is urgently needed.

References

  • 1.   Anjana RM, Deepa M, Pradeepa R, Mahanta J, Narain K, Das HK, et al. Prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes in 15 states of India: results from the ICMR-INDIAB populationbased cross-sectional study. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2017;5(8):585–96.
  • 2.   Anjana RM, et al. High prevalence of metabolic obesity in India: ICMR-INDIAB national study. Indian J Med Res. 2025 (online ahead of print).
  • 3.   Nanditha A, Susairaj P, Satheesh K, Raghavan A, Snehalatha C, Ramachandran A. Rising prevalence of type 2 diabetes among youth in southern India. J Diabetes. 2024;16(7):e13576.
  • 4.   Parikh RM, Gothankar JS. Diabetes burden among young Indians below 35 years: a nationwide screening analysis. Int J Diabetes Dev Ctries. 2024.
  • 5.   Anjana RM, Pradeepa R, Deepa M, et al. Generalized and abdominal obesity in urban and rural India. Indian J Med Res. 2015;142:139–50.
  • 6.   Joshi SR, Anjana RM, Deepa M, et al. Prevalence of dyslipidemia in urban and rural India. PLoS One. 2014;9:e96808.
  • 7.   Anjana RM, Pradeepa R, Das AK, et al. Physical activity patterns in India: ICMR-INDIAB study. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2014;11:26.
  • 8.   Magliano DJ, Islam RM, Barr ELM, et al. Young-onset type 2 diabetes mellitus. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2020;16:321–31.
  • 9.   Parikh RM, et al. Framework to combat youngonset type 2 diabetes in India. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2025 (in press).
  • 10.   Ramachandran A, Snehalatha C. Early onset of type 2 diabetes in Asian Indians. Diabetes Care. 2010;33:1039–41.
  • 11.   ICMR-MDRF Diabetes Biosamples Cohort Profile. Indian J Med Res. 2024.
  • 12.   Saxena A, et al. Prediabetes and diabetes among Indian adolescents: CNNS analysis. Public Health Nutr. 2022.
  • 13.   Hyperglycemia and obesity among Indian adolescents aged 15–19 years. World J Pediatr. 2024.
  • 14.   Baxi R, et al. Prevalence of metabolic syndrome in Indian adolescents. BMC Endocr Disord. 2022;22:256.
  • 15.   World Health Organization. Childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes in India. WHO South-East Asia J Public Health. 2016;5(1):17–21.

Data Sharing Statement

There are no additional data available. All raw data and code are available upon request.

Funding

This research received no funding.

Author Contributions

All authors contributed significantly to the work and approve its publication.

Ethics Declaration

This article does not involve any human or animal subjects, and therefore does not require ethics approval.

Acknowledgements

We would like to express our gratitude to the patients, their families, and all those who have contributed to this study.

Conflicts of Interest

No conflicts of interest in this work.

About this article

Cite this article

Jyoti Prakash, Kumar Harshvardhan, Surabhi Kumari. Young Onset Type 2 Diabetes in India: A Growing Preventive Challenge. J Prev Med. 2026; 14(1): 30-32.

Licence:

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.

Received Accepted Published
December 10, 2025 January 14, 2026 June 30, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/ijpm.2321.5917.14126.4

Keywords

Young Onset DiabetesType 2 DiabetesIndiaPrediabetesObesityPreventionAdolescents

Article Level Metrics

Last Updated

Monday 27 July 2026, 14:05:51 (IST)

897

Accesses

1
230
00

Citations


NA
NA
NA

Download citation


Article Keywords

Keyword Highlighting

Highlight selected keywords in the article text.


Timeline

Received December 10, 2025
Accepted January 14, 2026
Published June 30, 2026

licence

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.


Access this article

Reprint Order Form
Buy this Article
Institutional Subscriptions

Share