Hajj, the annual pilgrimage to Makkah (https://goo.gl/maps/47x1l), attracts two million Muslim men and women, including over 45,000 Hajjis (pilgrims) from the European Union [1,2]. It is an arduous and physically challenging event [1], and cardiovascular diseases are the principal causes of death during the Hajj [3]. With a worldwide diabetes prevalence of 8.5% [4], the Hajj will host 170,000 people with diabetes — a gross underestimation as many Hajjis come from areas of much higher urban adult diabetes rates.
