World Diabetes Day: The Small Things That Make Survival Possible

Imagine a mother watching her child grow thinner. Always thirsty. Always tired.

Finally, a nurse checks the child's blood sugar. The diagnosis: Type 1 diabetes.

Treatment is costly, but the hospital connects the family to a program that provides insulin at no cost.

Soon, mornings begin with a finger-prick before school. Meals are planned. Routines change- but hope returns.

The child goes back to class, back to being a kid, back to having a future.

I heard versions of this story over and over from mothers in Ghana, each describing how a diagnosis reshapes every rhythm at home - and how access to insulin reshapes the outcome.

Now multiply that experience by millions.

The Global Diabetes Burden

Diabetes is one of the fastest growing health emergencies of the 21st century.

• Over USD $1 trillion was spent on diabetes in 2024; this represents 12% of global health expenditure.
• 589 million adults (ages 20-79) live with diabetes today - roughly 1 in 9 adults.
• An estimated 9.1 million people are living with type 1 diabetes and need insulin to stay alive.
• 4 in 5 adults with diabetes (81%) live in a low and middle-income country.
• More than 3.4 million people died from diabetes in 2024, accounting for nearly 10% of all deaths worldwide.

For people who rely on insulin, survival depends on access - and on something far more mundane: the ability to keep that insulin between 2-8°C.

A simple refrigerator can mean the difference between a functioning medicine and a life-threatening shortage.

That's why, with support from Eli Lilly, Direct Relief is purchasing and installing hundreds of medical-grade refrigerators in resource-limited settings around the world.

The refrigerator may be the least interesting part of this story. But without it, there's no story to tell.

Expanding Access to Diabetes Care Globally

Direct Relief expands access to essential diabetes treatment in communities with the highest need, including in the U.S.

• Since 2010, Direct Relief has delivered more than $1 billion in diabetes medicines and supplies to more than50 countries.

One of the most impactful partnerships in this work is Life for a Child. which supports underserved children and youth living with type 1 diabetes.

• Direct Relief's partnership with Life for a Child provides access to insulin and injection devices to over 59,000 children and youth living with type 1 diabetes in 40+ countries.
• The partnership aims to reach 100,000 children and youth living with type 1 diabetes in 60 countries by 2030.

Behind each number is a child who can safely go to school, a family who can plan for tomorrow, and a community that doesn't lose its future to a preventable crisis.

Supporting Children in the U.S.

In the United States, Direct Relief also helps ensure that children with type 1 diabetes can experience something every child deserves - the chance to simply be a kid.

• Over the past five years, more than $3.5 million in donated medicines and supplies have supported these camps.
• Direct Relief supported 115 diabetes summer camps across the U.S. in 2025, serving more than 18,864 children.

On World Diabetes Day - and Every Day

World Diabetes Day is a reminder that the systems needed to manage diabetes - access to insulin, trained providers, reliable cold storage, and continuous monitoring - are not yet guaranteed for millions of people.

But they can be.

And with strong partners, targeted investments, and a focus on the people behind the statistics, they will be.

Thank you for being part of this work, and for supporting efforts that make life with diabetes safer, healthier, and possible - everywhere.

- Amy

Direct Relief: Hope Ahead .