• Neil Schneiderman, Maria Llabre, Catherine C Cowie, Janice Barnhart, Mercedes Carnethon, Linda C Gallo, Aida L Giachello, Gerardo Heiss, Robert C Kaplan, Lisa M LaVange, Yanping Teng, Leonel Villa-Caballero, and M Larissa Avilés-Santa.
• Department of Psychology and Behavioral Medicine Research Center, University of Miami, Miami, FL nschneid@miami.edu.
• Diabetes Care. 2014 Aug 1;37(8):2233-9.

ObjectiveWe examine differences in prevalence of diabetes and rates of awareness and control among adults from diverse Hispanic/Latino backgrounds in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL).Research Design And MethodsThe HCHS/SOL, a prospective, multicenter, population-based study, enrolled from four U.S. metropolitan areas from 2008 to 2011 16,415 18-74-year-old people of Hispanic/Latino descent. Diabetes was defined by either fasting plasma glucose, impaired glucose tolerance 2 h after a glucose load, glycosylated hemoglobin (A1C), or documented use of hypoglycemic agents (scanned medications).ResultsDiabetes prevalence varied from 10.2% in South Americans and 13.4% in Cubans to 17.7% in Central Americans, 18.0% in Dominicans and Puerto Ricans, and 18.3% in Mexicans (P < 0.0001). Prevalence related positively to age (P < 0.0001), BMI (P < 0.0001), and years living in the U.S. (P = 0.0010) but was negatively related to education (P = 0.0005) and household income (P = 0.0043). Rate of diabetes awareness was 58.7%, adequate glycemic control (A1C <7%, 53 mmol/mol) was 48.0%, and having health insurance among those with diabetes was 52.4%.ConclusionsPresent findings indicate a high prevalence of diabetes but considerable diversity as a function of Hispanic background. The low rates of diabetes awareness, diabetes control, and health insurance in conjunction with the negative associations between diabetes prevalence and both household income and education among Hispanics/Latinos in the U.S. have important implications for public health policies.© 2014 by the American Diabetes Association. Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work is not altered.

22 keywords...

hide…