Turkey has the highest diabetes prevalence in Europe, with nearly one in six adults living with the disease, according to the International Diabetes Federation’s (IDF) 2025 Diabetes Atlas, which warns that the global burden of diabetes has reached unprecedented levels.
The report shows that the number of adults aged 20–79 living with diabetes worldwide has risen sharply, from 537 million in the previous edition published in 2021 to an estimated 643 million in the current edition of the Diabetes Atlas, underscoring what the federation describes as a growing public health emergency.
The atlas highlights that diabetes prevalence varies significantly across regions, with Europe overall showing lower rates than parts of Asia and the Middle East.
Within Europe, Turkey ranks first in diabetes prevalence, despite having one of the continent’s youngest populations. According to the IDF’s country-level estimates, over 16 percent of Turkey’s adult population aged 20–79 — approximately 9.6 million people — are living with diabetes. The figure places Turkey ahead of all other European countries, followed by Albania, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Globally, Pakistan recorded the highest prevalence in the same age group with 35 million people.
Beyond its health impact, separate IDF data also detail the growing economic burden of diabetes. The federation estimates that Turkey’s total annual diabetes-related health expenditure amounts to roughly 29 billion international dollars, calculated using purchasing power parity (PPP). Average annual healthcare spending per person with diabetes in Turkey is estimated at about 3,019 international dollars.
The federation notes that diabetes-related spending includes not only direct medical costs but also long-term complications that put sustained pressure on healthcare systems and national economies.
The IDF attributes the rapid rise in diabetes globally to a combination of factors, including physical inactivity, unhealthy diets, rising obesity rates, population aging, urbanization and socioeconomic inequalities.
Public health experts have repeatedly warned that these trends are particularly pronounced in Turkey, where sedentary lifestyles and limited access to healthy food have been exacerbated by years of economic strain. Critics argue that public health policies often focus narrowly on individual behavior, such as weight control, while failing to address broader socioeconomic factors shaping health outcomes, including rising poverty and unequal access to nutritious food.
A Health Ministry survey published earlier this year also found that nearly two-thirds of more than 1.1 million participants were classified as overweight (35.8 percent) or obese (28.2 percent), underscoring obesity as a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes in Turkey.
Commenting on the findings in the atlas, Prof. Dr. Bilge Donuk, general manager of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality subsidiary Spor İstanbul, told the Karar daily that Turkey’s position at the top of Europe’s diabetes rankings was alarming given its demographic profile, highlighting the importance of physical activity for public health.
Donuk said that 150 minutes of physical activity per week among every 100,000 people could lift around $250 million in burden from the healthcare system. He added that İstanbul’s physical activity rate rose to 37.1 percent in 2024, generating an estimated $4 billion in annual economic benefit.
Turkey has been grappling with double-digit inflation since 2019, peaking at 85.5 percent in October 2022 and currently standing at about 31 percent, a prolonged cost-of-living crisis that has made it harder for many households to meet basic needs such as food, housing and healthcare.
The IDF warned that without stronger prevention policies and early intervention, diabetes prevalence will continue to rise worldwide, deepening health inequalities and placing further strain on public finances. While the report does not single out policy responses for individual countries, it emphasizes that promoting healthier diets, increasing physical activity and addressing structural socioeconomic factors are essential to reversing current trends.
