Some kids are more at risk than others when it comes to developing type 2 diabetes, Elizabeth Tracey reports

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A 77% increase in type 2 diabetes among American young people has been seen during the pandemic, Johns Hopkins pediatric endocrinology expert Sheela Magge and colleagues report. Magge says while obesity and sedentary lifestyle are clearly involved, so are social factors.

Magge: Youth onset diabetes is related to many social determinants of health. A lot of these kids were already marginalized, having both psychosocial stressors, economic stressors, and were disproportionately affected from the pandemic. So these kids have more food insecurity, have a lot of different issues going on. Is everything going to be reversed as the pandemic eases up? It’s hard to know.  :25

Magge says validating that type 2 diabetes is increasing in kids around the country will allow experts to develop a multifaceted approach to address it, including policy changes to improve physical activity levels for students, educate them about nutrition, and provide social support. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.