Half of all adults in South Korea either have diabetes or are in a pre-diabetic stage, elevating blood sugar management from a matter of personal lifestyle to a major burden on the nation's overall public health.
The Korean Diabetes Association on the 24th released its "Diabetes Fact Sheet 2024," revealing that 5.33 million adults aged 30 and older had diabetes in 2021–2022, representing a prevalence rate of 14.8%. When the association published its first fact sheet in 2012, the prevalence rate stood at 11.8%, marking a 3 percentage-point increase over the past decade. The pre-diabetes prevalence rate reached 41.4%, affecting approximately 14 million people.
However, the comprehensive control rate — the share of diagnosed patients who keep blood sugar, blood pressure and LDL cholesterol all within target levels — remained at just 15.9%. In effect, five out of six patients are not receiving systematic management. Among 310,000 patients in their 20s and 30s, only 43% were aware of their diabetes diagnosis, highlighting a clear blind spot among younger adults.
Liquid sugars have been identified as a key factor accelerating blood sugar spikes. Sugars contained in sweetened coffee and carbonated beverages enter the digestive system directly without chewing, causing blood sugar to rise faster than with solid foods. When blood sugar surges sharply, the pancreas is repeatedly burdened with secreting large amounts of insulin, which can lead to increased insulin resistance over the long term.
Obesity is a major variable that accelerates this process. According to surveys by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), the adult obesity prevalence rate in South Korea has remained in the upper 30% range in recent years. Given that obesity is directly linked to insulin resistance, it structurally raises the risk of developing diabetes.
There is also evidence that post-meal blood sugar management is central to early prevention. A research team from the endocrinology department at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital and Ajou University School of Medicine tracked 5,703 healthy adults and found that those whose blood sugar exceeded 145 mg/dL one hour after eating were 2.84 times more likely to develop diabetes than those below that level.
Short walks are also effective in lowering post-meal blood sugar. According to a study published in the international journal Diabetologia, splitting walks into 10-minute sessions after meals lowered average blood sugar by 12% compared with walking 30 minutes at once. Walking after dinner showed blood sugar reductions of up to 22%.
Experts stress that daily habits such as diet and beverage choices are the starting point for blood sugar management. Practical methods to reduce blood sugar fluctuations include eating meals centered on whole grains and mixed grains instead of refined carbohydrates, consuming food in the order of vegetables first, then protein, then carbohydrates, and switching post-meal beverages to unsweetened options.
Given that diabetes can lead to severe complications such as cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease, experts point out that lifestyle management at the pre-diabetic stage is critical — not only for individual health but also for reducing the national healthcare cost burden.
