Data shows that the number of young people being diagnosed with diabetes in the country is rising.

According to the 2024 data released by the Korean Diabetes Association (KDA) on Sunday, four days ahead of World Diabetes Day, 308-thousand young people, or two-point-two percent of people aged between 19 and 39, were diabetics.

About 228-thousand of them were people in their 30s, while 80-thousand others were those in their 20s.

According to the KDA data, about three-point-03 million people, or 21-point-eight percent of the young population, have prediabetes, a condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal on an empty stomach but not high enough to be diabetes.

In particular, 37 percent of men in their 30s were prediabetic.

Experts urged young people not to overlook the risks of diabetes, stressing the need for regular checkups and proper health management.