Epidemiology of factors related to self-reported diabetes among adults.

Analyzing data from some 8,000 adults in the United States reveals that adult diabetes is highly associated with age but not with sex. Older adults are more likely to have diabetes than younger adults. For younger adults diabetes is associated with body mass and blood pressure but not with physical activity level. Those who are above the median in body mass or who are hypertensive have higher risks of being afflicted with diabetes than those who are below the median in body mass or who are normotensive. For older adults diabetes is not associated with blood pressure but is highly associated with physical activity level and a measure of body mass based on maximum reported weight. Those who are lighter or who are physically active are much less likely to be diabetic than those who are heavier or who are physically inactive. We further found that for these adults the association between physical activity level and diabetes is independent of body mass. The epidemiological evidence strongly supports the conventional wisdom of dealing with diabetes by reducing body weight, lowering blood pressure, and particularly for older adults, engaging in some kind of regular physical activity.