Eleven eligible studies from six countries — Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and the United States of America — were included in this secondary analysis.
Recently published multi-study, cross-country research funded by Diabetes Canada shows that people with diabetes face stigma all over the world, highlighting a significant global health issue.
“No one chooses to develop diabetes. Yet, despite this, many people worldwide still see diabetes as a personal failure,” explains Dr. Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott, the Australia-based researcher who led the study. “Across all six countries we studied, people with diabetes reported experiences of blame and shame simply because they live with the condition. This harmful narrative of individual responsibility affects people living with diabetes.”
According to the findings published in Diabetic Medicine (2025), people with diabetes in each of the six examined countries often feel blamed for having the condition, treated unfairly, or made to feel ashamed, with some variances in the type and intensity of experiences.
“Diabetes is no one’s fault, and I know first-hand as someone who lives with type 2 diabetes, how diabetes stigma can impact a person,” says Laura Syron, President & CEO of Diabetes Canada, and a contributing author to the study. “We need to change the conversation around diabetes, so that more people can feel safe to disclose, seek care and engage fully in life.”
The study was unique in that it leveraged existing research — such as the original data that informed Diabetes Canada’s 2024 report, The Social Experiences of Living with Diabetes in Canada — that all utilized the same set of questions so that the results could be compared consistently across countries. These questions came from tools [the Diabetes Stigma Assessment Scales (DSAS-1/DSAS-2)] designed to measure stigma in people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
“With this new understanding of how diabetes stigma manifests in different parts of the world, we can develop more effective strategies, both locally and globally, to address this important health issue,” affirms Dr. Holmes-Truscott.
The research emphasizes the need for further international collaboration to support diabetes awareness-raising and stigma-reduction initiatives.
For more detail on the study, please read the Diabetic Medicine article.
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Dr Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott is Deputy Director of the Australian Centre for Behavioural Research in Diabetes, partnership between Diabetes Victoria and Deakin University. In 2024, she co-led an international consensus to bring an end to diabetes stigma and discrimination, culminating in a Pledge to end diabetes stigma. Visit www.acbrd.org.au | www.enddiabetesstigma.org.
Recently published multi-study, cross-country research funded by Diabetes Canada shows that people with diabetes face stigma all over the world, highlighting a significant global health issue.
“No one chooses to develop diabetes. Yet, despite this, many people worldwide still see diabetes as a personal failure,” explains Dr. Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott, the Australia-based researcher who led the study. “Across all six countries we studied, people with diabetes reported experiences of blame and shame simply because they live with the condition. This harmful narrative of individual responsibility affects people living with diabetes.”
According to the findings published in Diabetic Medicine (2025), people with diabetes in each of the six examined countries often feel blamed for having the condition, treated unfairly, or made to feel ashamed, with some variances in the type and intensity of experiences.
“Diabetes is no one’s fault, and I know first-hand as someone who lives with type 2 diabetes, how diabetes stigma can impact a person,” says Laura Syron, President & CEO of Diabetes Canada, and a contributing author to the study. “We need to change the conversation around diabetes, so that more people can feel safe to disclose, seek care and engage fully in life.”
The study was unique in that it leveraged existing research — such as the original data that informed Diabetes Canada’s 2024 report, The Social Experiences of Living with Diabetes in Canada — that all utilized the same set of questions so that the results could be compared consistently across countries. These questions came from tools [the Diabetes Stigma Assessment Scales (DSAS-1/DSAS-2)] designed to measure stigma in people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
“With this new understanding of how diabetes stigma manifests in different parts of the world, we can develop more effective strategies, both locally and globally, to address this important health issue,” affirms Dr. Holmes-Truscott.
The research emphasizes the need for further international collaboration to support diabetes awareness-raising and stigma-reduction initiatives.
For more detail on the study, please read the Diabetic Medicine article.
---
Dr Elizabeth Holmes-Truscott is Deputy Director of the Australian Centre for Behavioural Research in Diabetes, partnership between Diabetes Victoria and Deakin University. In 2024, she co-led an international consensus to bring an end to diabetes stigma and discrimination, culminating in a Pledge to end diabetes stigma. Visit www.acbrd.org.au | www.enddiabetesstigma.org.