Study on prevalence of risk factors of diabetes among adult population in a rural area of West Bengal, India

Background: India is currently in the grip of an explosive epidemic of type 2 diabetes. The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) estimates that by 2030, 8.4% of the adult population will have diabetes in India, which already is the world’s diabetes capital. Indian diabetic risk score (IDRS) is a cost effective and simple method for mass screening at community level. The objective of the study was to find out the prevalence of risk factors of diabetes among rural adults of Amdanga, West Bengal and to study the socio-demographic correlates of higher risk.Methods: A community-based, cross-sectional study was carried out in Amdanga, North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal from 1st August 2019 to 30 th September 2019 among 104 adult population on risk status for type 2 diabetes mellitus using IDRS. Interview was conducted using pre-designed semi-structured questionnaire followed by anthropometric measurement. The data were analyzed by SPSS 16.0 version.Results: Out of 104 study subjects, 9.6% study subjects were not at risk of having diabetes, 45.2% were at moderate risk and 45.2% were at high risk of having diabetes. Marital status, hypertension, outside food intake, exercise and strenuous activity were significantly associated with the risk of diabetes.Conclusions: Majority of the adult population were at moderate and high risk of developing type 2 diabetes, hence screening is of utmost importance so that interventions can be initiated at an early stage and change of lifestyle should be initiated as soon as possible to delay the occurrence of type 2 diabetes.