Hispanic Diabetes: New Study Finds Risk Factors For Type 2

Diabetes is a significant public health concern for the Hispanic community, as the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos found in a recent study that 35 percent of participants had metabolic syndrome, 36 percent had prediabetes, and 17 percent had diabetes. What's more, a national study on Latino health was released earlier this year by the National Institutes of Health found that Latinos are prone to develop Type 2 diabetes and 1 in 3 Latinos had pre-diabetes. The diabetes prevalence and trends were seen across the board despite national-origin differences amongst the population.

Additionally, a new study -- published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) -- has linked a gene variant prevalent in Latinos with a fivefold risk of type 2 diabetes. The findings of this study offer a possible explanation to why diabetes is so common within the Latino population. “Further research is warranted to evaluate the clinical relevance of these findings,” wrote Karol Estrada, from the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, and colleagues, in an institute news release in the JAMA study.

That said, it is often difficult to identify prevalence rates and causes within the Hispanic population due to the diversity seen in the Latino community. For instance, diabetes is more common in those of Mexican ancestry than those of Dominican background. But now a new study by the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine can shed some insight into the factors that leave the Hispanic population vulnerable to diabetes.

Published in Diabetes Care, the study found that individuals of Hispanic origin living in the United States are at higher risk of type 2 diabetes. The study also found that when broken down, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is 18.3 percent for Mexicans, 10.2 percent for South Americans, 17.7 percent for Central Americans and 18.1 percent for Dominicans and Puerto Ricans.

"Present findings indicate a high prevalence of diabetes but considerable diversity as a function of Hispanic background," conclude the authors of the study. "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."

For education, the researchers found that diabetes prevalence was the highest in households with low education, and a similar correlation was seen in low-income households.

“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 Schneiderman, who is also Director of the University of Miami Behavioral Medicine Research Center, in a university release. “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, they are that Hispanics/Latinos older than 65 years, who have better access to healthcare, 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.”