India’s diabetes burden is no longer just a public health challenge it has also become a major economic driver for the healthcare sector. Rising cases have fuelled demand for medicines, diagnostics, glucose monitoring devices, specialist consultations and chronic disease management, making diabetes one of the country’s largest healthcare markets.
India is home to nearly 89.8 million adults living with diabetes, the second-highest number globally, while over 100 million more are estimated to be in the pre-diabetic stage. Driven by rapid urbanisation, sedentary lifestyles, unhealthy diets and rising obesity, the country’s diabetes burden has also fuelled a thriving healthcare ecosystem.
According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), India’s diabetes-related healthcare expenditure reached USD 9.83 billion in 2024, reflecting robust demand for medicines, diagnostics, continuous glucose monitoring devices, MedTech solutions and long-term disease management. As experts increasingly advocate prevention and healthier lifestyles, the focus is shifting towards whether the diabetes economy can continue to grow by investing in early detection, digital health and preventive care rather than treatment alone.
India is home to 89.8 million adults living with diabetes, the second-highest globally, while over 107.8 million adults have prediabetes, according to the International Diabetes Federation. The burden is increasingly affecting younger Indians, with an International Journal of Diabetes in Developing Countries study of 225,955 people finding diabetes prevalence of 17.9 per cent among those below 35 years, 13.3 per cent below 30, and 9.8 per cent below 25, underscoring the growing need for early screening and lifestyle intervention.
Lifestyle Drives The Diabetes Economy
According to Dr. Shankar V, Internal Medicine Specialist at Apollo Hospitals, Seshadripuram, Bengaluru, India’s changing lifestyle has played a central role in the country’s growing diabetes burden. “India has the highest population after China, and we call India an iceberg of diabetes. People with a family history of diabetes are prone to developing diabetes or obesity, which is called metabolic syndrome,” he says.
He believes simple lifestyle interventions can significantly reduce future disease. “All these people should modify their lifestyle by exercising, eating less carbohydrates, and consuming more vegetables and pulses. They should walk regularly for 45 minutes. Stress levels should also be reduced.”
Echoing similar concerns, Dr. Nishant Jain, Consultant, Endocrinology at Kailash Deepak Hospital, says modern lifestyles are increasing diabetes risk across all age groups. “With work, classes and much of our daily lives shifting online, physical activity has reduced significantly. Our increasingly fast-paced lives have also changed the way we eat, with diets becoming more reliant on processed foods, excess sugar and unhealthy fats” he said.
He adds that the growing patient pool has naturally expanded demand across medicines, diagnostics and long-term care services, strengthening the diabetes care market. While the surge in cases has benefited several healthcare segments, experts argue that preventing diabetes would create a healthier population without necessarily slowing healthcare innovation.
Prevention Opens New Opportunities
Rather than seeing prevention as a threat, specialists believe it will reshape business priorities. “If prevention is successful and fewer people develop diabetes, then yes, the demand for some treatments may reduce. But I would see that as a positive development rather than a threat to healthcare,” says Dr. Jain. He believes the industry’s focus will gradually shift towards early screening, identifying people at risk and preventing complications before they require expensive treatment.
Dr. Shankar agrees that lifestyle changes can reduce dependence on medicines. “When the A1c value is less than 6 or 6.2, it can be reversible without medication. Lifestyle modification is very important to bring down diabetes and reduce the percentage of the population with diabetes in India,” he says.
According to Dr. Ashok Kumar Jhingan, Principal Director, Centre for Diabetes, Thyroid, Obesity & Endocrinology at BLK-Max Super Speciality Hospital, this shift is likely to create new commercial opportunities across preventive healthcare. He says pharmaceutical companies could increasingly invest in obesity management and early-intervention therapies, while diagnostics firms expand population-level screening programmes to identify pre-diabetic individuals before disease progression.
Technology will also become a key growth driver. AI, wearable devices and continuous glucose monitoring are expected to help doctors monitor patients more efficiently while enabling earlier intervention. “Technology can make diabetes care much more proactive. Digital tools and continuous glucose monitoring can give patients and doctors a better understanding of glucose patterns. The real value is when they help us intervene earlier and manage patients more effectively,” says Dr. Jain.
Dr. Shankar also highlights the importance of AI-enabled monitoring. “Such patients can be monitored with AI or CGM. Once these methods are followed, we can definitely bring down the values,” he says, adding that better glucose control can reduce complications such as heart disease, kidney failure and stroke.
Experts believe government policy will be equally important in supporting this transition through affordable medicines, preventive screening programmes and incentives for innovation. Their message is clear: India’s diabetes economy does not need more disease to grow. Instead, its next phase will likely be driven by prevention, digital health, diagnostics and smarter long-term disease management.
