NEW YORK, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- One in eight adults in New York City have diabetes, and nearly twice as many appear to be developing it, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.

    Over all, 12.5 percent of adult New Yorkers, or more than 700,000 people have diabetes, according to a study released Tuesday by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

    That is significantly higher than the 10.3 percent national rate in the United States. And in New York, about 30 percent of diabetics are unaware they have the disease -- they are not working to control the ailment and fend off devastating consequences.

    The study found that more than half of those who know they have diabetes are also not adequately controlling it.

    More than 90 percent of diabetes cases are Type 2 diabetes, which is closely linked to obesity, lack of exercise, poor diet and heredity.

    The findings are based on a study, the first of its kind, in which doctors examined and took blood samples from a representative sample of the city's population in 2004 -- more than 2,000 people from every neighborhood.

    The diabetes figures were the first to be released. More reports are to follow on asthma, heart disease, obesity and other conditions.