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The stigma surrounding diabetes, characterized by social judgments and discrimination, poses a significant threat to the emotional, mental, and physical well-being of individuals with the condition, impacting their access to optimal medical care and opportunities in social and professional realms.

The following is a summary of “Bringing an End to diabetes stigma and Discrimination: An International Consensus Statement on Evidence and Recommendations,” published in the January 2024  issue of Endocrinology by Speight, et al.

The stigma that people with diabetes often face, which includes unfavorable social judgments, preconceptions, and discrimination, may have a detrimental impact on their emotional, mental, and physical health, as well as their ability to care for themselves, their access to the best possible medical treatment, and their chances in social and professional settings. 

An international interdisciplinary expert panel of fifty-one individuals from eighteen different countries carried out quick evaluations. It took part in a three-round Delphi poll procedure to hasten the process of ending prejudice and stigma associated with diabetes. Twenty-five statements of evidence and twenty-four statements of recommendations were found to be acceptable by all parties. According to the general view, the stigma associated with diabetes is mostly caused by blame, attitudes of burden or disease, invisibility, dread or revulsion, and invisibility. 

Four out of every five individuals who have diabetes are subjected to the stigma associated with the condition, and one out of every five adults who have diabetes are subjected to discrimination (i.e., unfair and prejudiced treatment) as a result of their diabetes in areas such as health care, education, and work. Insults and prejudice against people with diabetes are hurtful, inappropriate, immoral, and futile measures. To aggressively combat and put an end to prejudice and stigma associated with diabetes, collaboration and leadership are required. Because of this, they reached a unanimous agreement on a commitment to eliminate prejudice and stigma associated with diabetes.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2213858723003479