Diabetes and Asian Americans

Diabetes is a long-term condition that affects how your body uses food for energy. When you eat, your body turns much of that food into sugar (glucose), which enters your blood. This increase in blood sugar causes an internal organ called the pancreas to release insulin, a hormone that helps move sugar from your blood into your cells so your body can use it for energy.

If you have diabetes, your body does not make enough insulin or cannot use it properly. This causes too much sugar to stay in your blood. Over time, high blood sugar can lead to serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease. The three main types of diabetes are type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes, which happens during pregnancy. Keeping a healthy weight, eating healthy foods, and staying physically active can help prevent and manage diabetes and may improve symptoms of type 2 diabetes.

  • In 2024, Asian American adults were 6% more likely than U.S. adults overall to have diabetes.
  • In 2022, Asian Americans died from diabetes 29% less often than the U.S. population overall.
  • In 2021, Asian American adults with diabetes were 14% less likely to have vision problems than U.S. adults with diabetes.
  • In 2023, Asian American adults with diabetes were about as likely as U.S. adults with diabetes to get a yearly eye exam.

Additional Resources

MedlinePlus

Related Data

Further Reading

Occurrence

Adults ages 18 and over with diagnosed diabetes, percentage, 2024
AsianTotal PopulationRatio (Asian / Total)
10.610.01.06
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. (2025). Interactive summary health statistics for adults: Percentage of diagnosed diabetes for adults aged 18 and over, United States, 2024. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Mortality

Diabetes mortality, age-adjusted rate per 100,000 population, 2022
Asian*Total PopulationRatio (Asian* / Total)
Male21.530.50.70
Female13.918.80.74
Both Sexes17.224.10.71
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. (2025). Deaths: Final data for 2022 (National Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 74, No. 4, Table 11). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Complications

Visual impairment among adults ages 18 and over with diabetes, age-adjusted percentage, 2021
Asian*Total PopulationRatio (Asian* / Total)
19.923.10.86
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2025). Visual impairment - National diabetes surveillance system. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Hospitalization for lower extremity amputation among adults ages 18 and over, rate per 1,000 population, 2021
Asian or Pacific Islander*Total PopulationRatio (Asian* / Total)
1.66.20.26
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2025). Hospitalization for lower extremity amputation surveillance – United States diabetes surveillance system. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Incidence of end stage renal disease (ESRD) due to diabetes, age-adjusted rate per million population, 2021
Asian or Pacific Islander*Total PopulationRatio (Asian* / Total)
197.2151.51.30
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2025). Diabetes-related ESRD incidence surveillance – United States diabetes surveillance system. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Health Care Use

Adults ages 18 and over with diagnosed diabetes who received an annual eye examination in the calendar year, percentage, 2023
Asian*Total PopulationRatio (Asian* / Total)
65.866.00.99
Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. (2025). National Health Interview Survey, Healthy People 2030: Annual eye examinations among adults with diagnosed diabetes by race/ethnicity, 2019–2023. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

*Population is non-Hispanic in the data source.


Date Last Reviewed: January 2026