One in Four Mauritian Adults Has Diabetes, Global Atlas Reveals

Mauritius has one of the highest diabetes rates in the world, with more than one in four adults living with the disease, according to the latest figures from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), released to mark World Diabetes Day on Saturday 14 November.

The IDF Diabetes Atlas 2025, the 11th edition of the federation's flagship global report, estimates that 218,100 Mauritian adults aged between 20 and 79 are living with diabetes. That figure represents a crude prevalence rate of 22.2 percent among that age group, out of a total adult population of approximately 981,000.

When adjusted to account for the age structure of the global population, a standard statistical method that allows fair comparison between countries with different demographic profiles, the rate stands at 20.1 percent. That translates to roughly one in every four or five Mauritian adults affected by the condition.

Mauritius ranks first among the seven countries and territories grouped in the IDF's South-East Asia region. The gap with its regional neighbours is striking. Bangladesh records a prevalence of 13.2 percent, Bhutan 12.0 percent, India 10.5 percent, and Sri Lanka 10.2 percent. Despite being geographically located in the Indian Ocean, Mauritius falls under the IDF's South-East Asia classification for administrative and epidemiological purposes.

World Diabetes Day is observed every year on 14 November. This year's global theme is Act Early on Diabetes, a call to governments, health systems and individuals to prioritise prevention, early screening and timely treatment before complications set in.

Diabetes is a chronic condition in which the body either does not produce enough insulin or cannot use it effectively, leading to dangerously high blood sugar levels over time. Left unmanaged, it can cause severe complications including heart disease, kidney failure, blindness and lower-limb amputations.

Mauritius has long struggled with non-communicable diseases linked to diet, lifestyle and genetic factors. The country's high diabetes burden has been documented in successive IDF reports for over a decade, and local health authorities have run repeated public awareness campaigns targeting sugar consumption, physical inactivity and obesity, all key risk factors.

What this means: For residents, the data is a reminder that diabetes is not a rare or distant problem in Mauritius. It affects hundreds of thousands of families across the island. For anyone over 20, especially those with a family history of the disease, being overweight, or living a sedentary lifestyle, regular blood sugar screening at a local community health centre is a low-cost step that can catch the condition before it causes lasting damage. Early diagnosis dramatically improves outcomes and reduces the long-term cost of treatment on both individuals and the public health system.

Source: ION News