Brent in north London has the highest incidence of people suffering from diabetes in England, according to an analysis by the charity Diabetes UK.
It has drawn up a list of the 10 areas in England with the highest rates of diabetes. Brent, at 10.5%, was almost double that of the lowest, the City of London at 5.5%, despite the two being just three miles apart.
Other areas in the top 10 were: Newham (9.9%), Harrow (9.4%) and Redbridge (8.7%) in London; Wolverhampton (9.6%); Sandwell (9.4%); Leicester (9.3%); Walsall (8.8%); Blackburn with Darwen (8.7%); and Birmingham (8.7%).
While Brent is the only area with a rate of more than one person in 10 diagnosed with diabetes, the charity said that six other areas were projected to join it by the end of the decade.
Nationally, 7.4% of people aged over 16 were now thought to have the disease, and this is projected to rise to 8.4% by 2020, with the rise expected to comprise mainly of new cases of type 2 diabetes.
In a separate study, the charity warned that fewer than one-third of people are aware of the potential consequences of type 2 diabetes.
Just 30% of a poll of 1,000 people were aware of the possible complication of blindness, dropping to 15% when it came to the possibility of a heart attack, 28% for amputation and 7% for stroke.
Only 13% knew the condition increased risk of death, despite people with type 2 diabetes being 36% more likely to die in any given year than someone who does not have the condition.
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