Impact Opportunities Equity, Q4 2023

Until recently, countering both diabetes and obesity largely focused on prevention – unfortunately with limited success. However, recent medical advances present the opportunity to manage diabetes more effectively, and to treat both type-2 diabetes and obesity with highly effective drugs – something we view as a major impact opportunity.

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Around 537 million people worldwide have diabetes¹, while over 650 million are obese² – and numbers are rising rapidly. With both conditions linked to a wide range of other serious medical issues, countering these two silent killers is one of the key healthcare and social challenges of the 21^st
Diabetes is not a new problem; however, the impact of modern lifestyles has resulted in a huge surge in cases of type-2 diabetes. Given the limited impact of public health campaigns, effective treatments are vital to reduce the social and economic cost.
Being overweight is both a major cause of type-2 diabetes and a factor in numerous other diseases, including heart attacks, strokes, osteoarthritis and cancer. As obesity becomes recognised as a public health issue, the pathway to effective treatment is opening.

Impact Opportunities Equity, Q4 2023

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Archive: Previous editions

Please see previous editions of our Impact Opportunities reporting below:

¹ Facts & figures page of the International Diabetes Federation website. Accessed 24 November 2023. https://idf.org/about-diabetes/diabetes-facts-figures/

² Obesity and overweight page of the World Health Organization website. Accessed 24 November 2023. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight