Key result
Diabetes affects ~14% of rural Nepalese women, with prediabetes found in over one-third.
Why the study?
Data on diabetes prevalence and associated risk factors among women in rural Nepal were scarce.
Cross-Sectional (n=757)
No
This study reveals a surprisingly high prevalence of diabetes (13.5%) and prediabetes (38.5%) among women in rural Nepal, highlighting the impact of dietary transitions and the need for early screening.
High diabetes/prediabetes burden in rural Nepalese women suggests screening needs; hypothesis-generating for dietary risks, requiring prospective confirmation.
Given the scarcity of data on diabetes prevalence and associated risk factors among women in rural Nepal, we aimed to examine this, using glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) as a diagnostic tool. A cross-sectional survey addressing reproductive health and non-communicable diseases was conducted in 2012-2013 among non-pregnant, married women in Bolde, a rural district of Nepal. HbA1c ≥ 6.5% (48 mmol/mol) was used as diagnostic criterion for diabetes, a cut-off of 7.0% (53 mmol/mol) was used to increase the specificity. HbA1c was measured in 757 women (17-86 years). The prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes was 13.5% and 38.5%, respectively. When using 7.0% as a cut-off, the prevalence of diabetes was 5.8%. Aging, intake of instant noodles and milk and vegetarian food (ns) were associated with increased risk for diabetes. Waist circumference was higher among women with diabetes, although not significant. The women were uneducated (87.6%), and only 12% had heard about diabetes. In conclusion, we observed a higher prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes than anticipated among rural, Nepalese women. The increased risk was mainly attributed to dietary factors. In contrast to most previous studies in Nepal, we used HbA1c as diagnostic criterion.
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Yogal et al. (2022) conducted a cross-sectional in Diabetes and prediabetes (n=757). Rural residence and dietary factors was evaluated on Prevalence of diabetes (HbA1c ≥ 6.5%). Among women in a rural district of Nepal, the prevalence of diabetes was 13.5% and prediabetes was 38.5% based on HbA1c criteria, with increased risk associated with aging and dietary factors.
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