Diabetes: Unhealthy lifestyle and obesity explain half of socioeconomic differences in T2DM

摘要

The incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is known to be inversely associated with socioeconomic status, but the cause of this association is unclear. Silvia Stringhini and colleagues now report that health behaviours and BMI can explain almost 50% of this association. In this prospective cohort study, 7,237 adults who did not have T2DM at baseline were followed up for a mean of 14.2 years and the incidence of T2DM was calculated. Lifestyle risk factors, such as alcohol consumption, smoking, diet and physical activity, and BMI were assessed repeatedly during follow-up to measure their contribution to the association between socioeconomic status and T2DM incidence. Socioeconomic status was categorized as high, intermediate or low, depending on the participants' occupation.