每日英语：China Overtakes U.S. in Number of Diabetes Cases

China is now home to the world's largest diabetes population. The number of people who have diabetes or early signs of the disease is greater than the entire population of the U.S.

diabetes：糖尿病　　　　

An estimated 113.9 million Chinese adults 18 years or older--60.5 million men and 53.4 million women--may have had diabetes in 2010, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, which surveyed nearly 99,000 Chinese adults three years ago. The study said that in 2010, 493.4 million Chinese may have had prediabetes, a state of potential risk, when blood sugar is higher than normal.

The findings are alarming, signaling that China is facing a major public health problem, the study said. 'These data suggest that diabetes may have reached an alert level in the Chinese general population, with the potential for a major epidemic of diabetes-related complications, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, and chronic kidney disease in China in the near future without an effective national intervention,' the report said.

epidemic：传染病，流行病　　　　cardiovascular diease：心血管疾病　　　　chronic：慢性的，长期的

Chinese are developing the disease at a lower body mass index, or earlier onset, than their U.S. counterparts, according to the study. It also found that diabetes is more common in cities and among overweight people who are young or middle aged.

onset：开始，着手，发作，进攻　　　　

The last decade has brought greater wealth to a country of 1.34 billion, but with fatter wallets has come drastic changes in lifestyle, including diet and migration to cities, that have put the population's health at peril. Major causes of death have shifted from infectious diseases and diet-related deficiencies to hypertension and obesity and now more than 260 million of the country's citizens suffer from a chronic disease, according to data from China's Ministry of Health.

drastic：激烈的，猛烈的　　　　hypertension：高血压，过度紧张　　　　obesity：肥胖　　　　

Prevalence of diabetes reached 11.6% of adults, with men having a higher rate 12.1% than women, at 11%, the study said. That surpasses the 2007 rate of 9.7%, or 92.4 million adults, according to an earlier study from the Journal. It also exceeds the 11.3% prevalence of diabetes in adults over the age of 20 in the U.S., according to data from the American Diabetes Association.

prevalence：流行，普遍，广泛　　　　

There are questions about how China's health-care system will hold up with the increased burden. Already, more than 80% of China's government spending on health care goes to covering the cost of the country's chronic diseases, according data from the World Health Organization. Less than 2% is allocated toward primary prevention, according to the WHO.

An estimated 30% of Chinese with diabetes are aware of their condition, the study said.