Text tabled : B7-0145/2012, B7-0146/2012, B7-0147/2012, B7-0148/2012

  Viktor Uspaskich (ALDE), in writing. – (LT) The rapporteur reminds us of the severity of the diabetes epidemic in Europe. In the European Union, 325 000 people die from diabetes each year, in other words two people every two minutes. Research by Vilnius University has shown that diabetes-related mortality has grown constantly in Lithuania over the last two decades. As the report shows, this disease is mostly associated with obesity. The rate of obesity in Lithuania is over 20%, the second highest rate in the European Union, and 5% more than the Union average. According to a report published by the European Commission and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 50.1% of Europeans are obese, twice as many as 20 years ago. Diabetes and obesity cost human health and health care systems dear. In their report, the European Commission and the OECD indicate that they have calculated a 70% increase in health care expenditure for European Union Member States over 2007-2015 due to the spread of diabetes. In Lithuania, more than 10% of all money earmarked for health care is spent on treating diabetes. It is expected that this expenditure will increase unless serious action is taken to address the diabetes problem; as the rapporteur mentioned the number of people with diabetes in Europe is expected to increase by 16.6% by 2030.