New research studies the association between environmental quality in over 3,000 United States counties and finds intriguing differences between rural and urban areas.

Estimates indicate that over 30 millionTrusted Source people in the United States are currently living with type 2 diabetes, and another 84 million are living with prediabetes.

Complications from diabetes are the leading cause of adult blindness, kidney failure, and amputations.

Type 2 diabetes has witnessed a rapid increase in the last few years. Between 2002 and 2012, the condition increased by 4.8% each year in the U.S.

When added to a genetic predisposition, diet and insufficient physical activity account for a lot of this increase. But, are these two risk factors the only environmental influences that explain the rising trend of diabetes in the U.S.?

New research set out to examine if environmental factors in rural and urban areas also play a role. Dr. Jyotsna Jagai, a research assistant professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) School of Public Health, is the first author of the new study.

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