The European Parliament adopted a resolution on prevention, management and better care of diabetes in the EU on the occasion of World Diabetes Day.

The text adopted in plenary was tabled by the EPP, S&D, Renew, Greens/EFA, ECR and The Left groups.

The resolution stated that diabetes is one of the most common non-communicable diseases (NCDs) with more than 33 million people in the EU living with the disease. This number is predicted to rise to 38 million by 2030. More than 95 % of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes, with risk factors including weight above a healthy range, tobacco use, lack of exercise and unhealthy diet.

There is no EU legal framework against discrimination towards people living with diabetes or other chronic diseases, and prejudice against those people living with the condition is still widespread in schools, job recruitment, work places, insurance policies and assessment for driving licenses throughout the EU. Developments in knowledge of diabetes as well as in treatment and technology in recent years mean that people living with diabetes can be in much more precise and continuous control of their blood sugar, enabling them to overcome previously perceived risks in daily activities.

Parliament recalled the global coverage targets for 2030 for diabetes adopted at the 75th World Health Assembly, including the targets of 80 % of people living with diabetes being diagnosed. It stressed that the EU coverage targets for 2030 should be even more ambitious. In this regard, the Commission and the Member States are called on to demonstrate political commitment and set ambitious targets for reversing the rising trend in numbers of Europeans with diabetes , to reduce inequalities between EU citizens and improve the care and quality of life of people living with diabetes.

Member States should develop, implement and monitor national diabetes plans and strategies with comparable milestones and targets, including a risk-reduction and screening/early action component to target, among other things, the socio-economic determinants of health, the promotion of health-enabling environments and health and digital literacy, education and awareness rising aimed at both the population at large and high-risk groups in particular (such as people with prediabetes), and which is designed to reduce inequalities and optimise healthcare resources.

Healthy diet

Parliament underscored the essential role of a healthy food environment in preventing NCDs and asked the Member States and the Commission to step up their actions to ensure that the most healthy and sustainable food is also the most affordable. It emphasised, furthermore, the need to address the overconsumption of meat and ultra-processed products , and products high in sugars , salt and fats and welcomed the revision of the EU school fruit, vegetables and milk scheme and of the EU’s policy on the promotion of agricultural products.

The Commission and the Member States are called on to help consumers to make informed, healthy and sustainable choices about food products by means of the adoption of a mandatory and harmonised EU front-of-pack nutritional label that is developed based on robust and independent scientific evidence. Parliament also called for a new EU action plan on childhood obesity and for fiscal measures to make fresh foods (such as fruits and vegetables, pulses, legumes and wholegrains) more affordable and accessible at national level, especially for people on low incomes.

The resolution underlined that tobacco , harmful alcohol consumption and environmental pollution are risk factors common to other chronic diseases and called for an integrated chronic disease prevention programme, to be developed.

Research

The coordination of European and inter-Member State diabetes research should be improved, according to Parliament. While stressing the importance of excellence in medical research and innovation in the Union, Members called for additional support in research in underrepresented populations, such as the elderly, children, women and patients with comorbidities. They reiterated their call to guarantee that research priorities are driven by patient and public health needs and that public funds are invested in a transparent manner, ensuring the availability and affordability of products resulting from these partnerships and public funds.

The Commission is called on to address the root causes of shortages of pharmaceuticals.

Funding

The Commission and the Member States are called on to ensure continued support for diabetes funding under the current and future EU framework programmes for research, including research on integrated care models, effective interventions in diabetes prevention and management, and the impact of digital technologies on diabetes self-management and behavioural changes.