Estimating diabetes and diabetes-free life expectancy in Mexico and seven major cities in Latin America and the Caribbean.

OBJECTIVES To estimate diabetes and diabetes-free life expectancy in seven major cities in Latin America and the Caribbean, plus Mexico as a whole. METHODS Data from the Survey on Health, Well-being, and Aging in Latin America and the Caribbean (n = 10 602) and the Mexican Health and Aging Study (n = 6 953) on individuals 60 or more years of age were used in this study. Estimates of diabetes and diabetes-free life expectancy were obtained by applying the Sullivan method. RESULTS Diabetes life expectancy for men 60 years of age was highest in Mexico City (4.5 years) and Bridgetown (3.4 years), and lowest in Havana (1.3 years). Diabetes-free life expectancy for men 60 years of age was highest in Santiago (17.6 years) and lowest in Bridgetown (14.2 years) and São Paulo (14.3 years). For women, diabetes life expectancy was highest in Bridgetown (5.4 years), followed by Mexico City and Havana; but these three cities also had the lowest diabetes-free life expectancy. Women 60 years of age in Buenos Aires had the lowest diabetes life expectancy (2.5 years), and in Santiago, the highest, with a diabetes-free life expectancy of 20.7 years. CONCLUSIONS Older individuals in Latin America and the Caribbean can expect to live a large proportion of their remaining lives with diabetes. There were also important differences across settings; in particular, the pronounced diabetes burden in Barbados and Mexico and among women. Given the fast growth of the elderly population in these societies, it is crucial to promote healthy eating and exercise as a way of reducing the burden of diabetes.