Diabetes Among Hispanics

All Are Not Equal - Seite 2

As seen in other populations, prevalence rose dramatically with age, reaching more than 50 percent for Hispanic/Latino women (overall) by the time they reached age 70 and 44.3 percent for men aged 70-74. The study also found that the longer a person lived in the United States, the more likely they were to develop diabetes, and the more education and income they had, the less likely they were to develop diabetes. The authors noted that many people in the study had poor glycemic control (52 percent) and/or lacked health insurance (47.9 percent).

"The picture that emerges from HCHS/SOL is one in which Hispanics/Latinos with diabetes have a high potential future risk of developing complications due to relatively poor glycemic control and diabetes management," said Neil Schneiderman, PhD, principal investigator for the HCHS/SOL. "Although there is a steep gradient relating high diabetes prevalence to low household income and education in Hispanics/Latinos, the finding of improved diabetes awareness among those who have insurance suggests that increasing the number of those insured may help flatten the gradient."

"If there are any bright highlights in the picture," he added, "they are that Hispanics/Latinos older than 65 years, who have better access to health care, are more likely to be aware of their diabetes, more likely to be receiving treatment, and have better glycemic control than those people under the age of 65 years."

To reach author Neil Schneiderman, PhD, James L Knight Professor Psychology, Medicine, Psychiatry and Biomedical Engineering; Principal Investigator, Miami Field Center, HCHS/SOL, email: [e-mail].

Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome Among Hispanics/Latinos

Cardiometabolic abnormalities -- a cluster of risk factors for both cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes such as abdominal obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and triglycerides and high blood glucose levels -- likewise differ among Hispanic/Latino groups but are higher in this population overall than among non-Hispanic whites, according to a second analysis of HCHS/SOL data. It found that the overall prevalence of the metabolic syndrome, as with diabetes, was highest among Puerto Ricans (37 percent) and lowest among South Americans (27 percent). The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome was significantly higher among Puerto Rican women (40.9 percent) than Puerto Rican men (32.6 percent). The rates of metabolic syndrome were higher in all study groups than the rates reported in other studies among populations in Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela.