Across the Maldives, Diabetes Risk Is Already Present for Many Adults

Diabetes is often treated as a disease that arrives later in life. But in the Maldives, a nationwide screening study published in December 2023 suggests the risk is already widespread. And it begins much earlier than many assume.

Across the Maldives, 76.6% of adults screened were classified as high risk of developing diabetes. This does not mean most people have the disease. It does mean the conditions that lead to it are already present for many.

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The screening shows a consistent pattern across the population. 80.9% had a higher than normal BMI, 86.5% had high body fat, and 75.5% had high waist circumference, a key marker of abdominal fat. These are not isolated findings. They are the core risk factors associated with diabetes, and they appear together, not separately.

Gaps in awareness and treatment

Risk is not only about what is measured but also what is missed.

10.3% of adults screened said they were unaware of their diabetes status, while another similar share showed elevated blood sugar levels despite having no known history of the condition. Even among those already diagnosed, treatment is not universal. 15.1% reported that they were not using any medication.

Risk builds early. And compounds over time

The data also shows how early these patterns begin.

Body fat levels rise sharply between the late teens and early thirties, suggesting that risk accumulates well before most people would consider themselves vulnerable. Behavioural trends reinforce this. Among those aged 18 to 25, 43.3% reported consuming energy drinks regularly, the highest of any age group. Tobacco use also increases steadily with age, more than doubling between young adulthood and later middle age.

Over time, these risks translate into more visible conditions. High blood pressure, which is often linked to the same underlying factors, rises sharply with age, affecting more than half of those aged 66 and above.

Taken together, the findings point to something broader than a single disease. Diabetes, in this context, is not an isolated condition, but one outcome of a wider set of risks that build gradually and across much of adult life.

The data also suggests that this trajectory is not fixed. Regular movement, limiting sugary drinks, maintaining a healthy waist size, eating balanced meals, and early screening all play a role in reducing risk.

Because while diabetes may be diagnosed at a single point in time, it develops over years.