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Millions of people will be screened for pre-diabetes from next year, as part of a new government drive to prevent the disease.

As part of the largest preventive initiative in the history of the NHS, half of all patients over 40 will be placed on some form of cardiovascular medication, reports Pulse.

It is believed that the programme will cost around £332 million a year, but the Department of Health maintains it will be hugely cost-effective in the coming years.

The five-yearly vascular checks are expected to necessitate the equivalent of an extra 1,000 GPs, practice nurses and healthcare assistants by 2012.

Dr Matt Kearney, a GP in Runcorn, Cheshire, and a public health practitioner at Knowsley PCT, said he believed the majority of practices in the area would sign up for the initiative.

"I think GPs have seen the opportunity to make a real difference to patient outcomes," he said.

The programme is to be phased in over a four-year period.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes.

More than 200 schoolchildren with diabetes are set to lobby MPs for more support in schools.

A spokesman for leading charity Diabetes UK said teachers were not always aware of the facts surrounding the condition and what measure needed to be in place.

The mother of 12-year-old Jay Saint – who is one of the pupils taking part in the campaign – said a teacher once confiscated a biscuit that her son was using to control his blood-sugar levels.

Furthermore, she claimed that Jay was rarely allowed to go on school trips.

"When the head teacher finally agreed to meet me, I was told the best thing I could do was to take him out of school," she said.

Ms Saint added that the only reason such thing were happening was due to a "lack of support and understanding".

Sharon Tillbrook, regional manager of Diabetes UK in the East of England, said families are suffering as result of inadequate diabetes support in schools.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes

Poor care in primary schools is compromising the health of children with type I diabetes, campaigners have claimed.

Thousands of children in England suffer from type I diabetes, which is brought about by a lack of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.

However, Diabetes UK is concerned that some 6,500 children in the UK are not covered by medical policies to ensure they have access to insulin injections when necessary.

Douglas Smallwood, chief executive of the charity said it was "unacceptable" for medication programs to be changed so they fit around school hours, stressing that children must be "properly supported" in managing their diabetes.

"Where parents have to step in to give insulin injections during school hours, we hear all too often that they are unable to work because they have to go into school every day - this can put heartbreaking strain on families both financially and emotionally," he said.

Diabetes UK is the largest charity in the UK devoted to the condition.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes.

Makerfield MP Ian McCartney has called for immediate action to deal with a potential diabetes "timebomb".

According to Diabetes UK, some 4,307 people have diabetes in Makerfield, with the figure expected to increase to almost 6,000 by 2025, reports Wigan today.

The group is planning to launch Make Diabetes a Priority - a ten-point checklist for policy-makers to consult.

Mr McCartney said the statistics are indicative of a "grim reality" for diabetes sufferers.

"Discrimination in the workplace, bullying of schoolchildren with the condition, blindness and the loss of limbs paint a picture of a cruel condition that will affect over 5,900 people in the Makerfield area by 2025 unless action is taken now," he said.

According to statistics, around 2.5 million people are currently diagnosed with diabetes in the UK.

However, it is thought that more than 500,000 have the condition without being aware of it.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes

Alzheimer’s sufferers who have diabetes or high blood pressure could have shorter lifespans than those who do not, new research has suggested.

A study conducted in the US and published in the Neurology journal indicated Alzheimer’s patients with diabetes were twice as likely to die before those who were not diabetic.

Furthermore, Alzheimer’s sufferers with high blood pressure were found to be two-and-a-half times more likely to have a shorter lifespan than those with regular blood pressure.

Commenting on the findings, study author Yaakov Stern said: "Studies show that the average lifespan of a person diagnosed with Alzheimer’s can be anywhere from three to nine years."

According to the Alzheimer’s Society, new information about how dementia interacts with other diseases could be "highly beneficial".

The group notes that such a development could allow Alzheimer’s sufferers to make significant changes which could "reduce risk and improve lives".

The Alzheimer’s Society aims to improve the quality of life of people with the disease.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes

The annual cost of treating diabetes is on the rise, according to a study by researchers in the US.

According to the team from Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of Chicago, the cost of prescription diabetes drugs nearly doubled to $12.5 billion (£7.8 billion) between 2001 and 2007.

The findings have raised questions as to whether the rising cots are being reflected in improved care and better overall results.

Randall Stafford, associate professor of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and senior author of the study, said: "It’s important to recognise how expensive treatment for diabetes has become.

"This near-doubling of diabetes costs may partly reflect better care, but we need to step back and examine the value of newer and more costly medications that may be overused."

G Caleb Alexander, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago, said he hoped the findings would result in new treatments being better evaluated.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes

The annual cost of diabetes drugs nearly doubled between 2001 and 2006, according to a new study.

According to recent research published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, the cost of such drugs increased from $6.7 billion (£4.28 billion) to $12.5 billion.

The treatment of diabetes accounted for one-tenth of all healthcare expenditure in the US in 2002.

Caleb Alexander, from the University of Chicago and the study’s lead researcher, said: "Although more patients and more medications per patient played a role, the single greatest contributor to increasing costs is the use of newer, more expensive medications."

Furthermore, the study indicated that the number of Americans diagnosed with the condition climbed from ten million in 1994 to 19 million in 2007.

According to the researchers such an increase can be attributed to eating habits and behaviour – as age, obesity, and physical inactivity are all associated with the risk of developing type II diabetes.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes

Researchers in the US have devised a new treatment involving an artificial pancreas which could develop a new treatment for diabetes.

Developed at the University of Virginia, the new system, which could affect diabetes/” target=”_self”>diabetes life insurance in the future, has completed first level clinical trials.

The artificial pancreas has been devised to regulate the blood glucose levels in Type 1 diabetics and has been successfully trialled on five patients at the university.

Boris Kovatchkev, associate professor of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences at the university, said the treatment could "greatly improve current methods" of treatment one day.

"Our initial results are very encouraging," he added.

"The system entirely maintained the patients’ blood glucose levels, and the algorithm achieved excellent overnight control without any incidence of hypoglycaemia."

The latest figures from Diabetes UK showed that almost 2.5 million are affected by the disease, with the number rising by over 167,000 since last year.

Burning, tingling or numbness in the feet could be a warning sign of diabetes, according to experts in the US.

The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons points out that such symptoms should not be ignored, as they could be caused by a condition called diabetic peripheral neuropathy, or nerve damage.

Boston foot and ankle surgeon John M. Giurini said: "Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is not only painful but dangerous.

"It’s a leading contributor to foot ulcers in people with diabetes."

According to the researchers, even diabetic patients with good blood-sugar control can develop diabetic neuropathy.

"When you have diabetes, and especially diabetic neuropathy, a minor cut on your foot can turn into a catastrophe," says Giurini. "The statistics on diabetic ulcers are sobering."

Some 23 million people have diabetes in the US, with one in four unaware they have the condition.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes

Cases of diabetes have increased in the UK, with the total number now standing at almost 2.5 million.

According to latest figures from Diabetes UK, the number of people with the condition has risen by more than 167,000 since last year.

Some 90 per cent of sufferers have the type II form of the disease – which has strong links to lifestyle and obesity.

Douglas Smallwood, chief executive of Diabetes UK, said: "These are truly alarming figures. Part of why we have seen such a huge increase can be attributed to improved screening from healthcare services and greater awareness amongst those at high risk of type II diabetes.

"However, there is no getting away from the fact that this large increase is linked to the obesity crisis."

Mr Smallwood added that diabetes is now one of the most significant "health challenges" facing the UK today.

Currently, there are around five million obese people in the UK, compared to around 4.8 million last year.

The Insurance Helpline specialises in obtaining cover for people living with diabetes