Assume the following facts are true for 2016: 318 million people lived in the United States. A total of 2,468,435 of these people died during 2016. Diabetes was a leading cause of illness and death with 29 million people living with diabetes at the beginning of 2016. During 2016 1.4 million people were newly diagnosed with diabetes. In 2016 how many people were at risk for diabetes?

The number of people that were at risk for diabetes in 2016 is 289 million people

Explanation:

The number of persons at risk of a health outcome in a population is the difference between the total population and the number of persons that already have the health outcome in the population.

The number at risk of an outcome is calculated at the beginning of the year, before changes occur throughout the progression of the year, to accurately state the number at risk for that research year.

In our example, we will be concerned only about the data gotten at the beginning of the year, and these include;

The total population = 318,000,000 people

Number of persons with diabetes at the beginning of 2016 = 29,000,000 people.

Therefore, number of persons at risk for diabetes in 2016 = The total population - Number of persons with diabetes at the beginning of 2016

= 318,000,000 - 29,000,000 = 289,000,000 (289 million) people).

Note do not confuse this with the risk ratio for diabetes in 2016, which is the ratio of the number with diabetes and the total population.