Diabetes: Socioeconomic Inequalities in the Portuguese Population in 2014

Abstract

Diabetes is a major public health problem and it is related to socioeconomic factors. The aim of this study is to describe socioeconomic inequalities in the distribution of diabetes in the population with 25 years or more, resident in Portugal in 2014. Material and Methods:Data from the Health National Survey 2014 was analysed, n = 16 786. We estimated the prevalence of diabetes in the population and stratified by socioeconomic variables namely educational level and income. The extent of socioeconomic inequalities was assessed using concentration index and the relative index of inequality. Results: Diabetes was found to be concentrated among the people with lower educational levels (concentration index = -0.26) and lower income quintiles (concentration index = -0.14). Relative index of inequality also showed a lower degree of inequality among the most educated (0,20; CI 95% = [0,12; 0,32]) and with higher income (0,59; CI 95% = [0,48; 0,74]). Discussion: Distribution of diabetes is associated with education and income. Previous studies have shown that although income might reflect lifestyle patterns, education reflects better social factors that are important for establishing healthier behaviours. Also, the National Health Service, of universal coverage and free of charge, might have contributed to reduce inequalities in the access to health by those with the lowest income. Conclusion: Supporting 'Health in All Policies' might reduce inequalities, namely by improving population educational level and actions that promote health literacy.

Socioeconomic Factors and Inequality in the Prevalence and Treatment of Diabetes among Middle-Aged and Elderly Adults in China

“…Middle-aged and elderly women have a significantly greater likelihood of diabetes than men according to our results which is again in agreement with the previous studies [11, 12, 15]; this result may be related to the menopause. Older people were found to have a higher prevalence of diabetes, as reported by most previous studies in this field [3, 5, 11–15, 27, 35]. Marriage is protective of health in general, and this is especially true among older couples [36].…”

“…Diabetes-related inequality is dynamic and dependent on cultural and societal development [24]. Moradi et al [25] reported that diabetes inequality shifted from poor people to the rich in Iran, while other studies found an inverse relationship between socioeconomic inequality and the prevalence of diabetes in Germany and Portugal [26, 27]. Biswas et al [28] revealed a disproportionate concentration of diabetes among the richest urban and the poorest rural populations in Bangladesh.…”

A Scoping Review of Possible Solutions for Decreasing Socioeconomic Inequalities in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

“…Introducing reliable sources and channels about diabetes: Studies emphasized that information sources used by diabetic patients should be among the most reliable sources of health information. [ 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 ]…”

“…Develop a purposeful strategy in providing knowledge and skills tailored to the HL of individuals: The results of research in the world suggested that providing HL should be customized for different groups in society. [ 6 11 22 23 24 25 26 30 34 35 37 38 39 40 41 ]…”

“…Increasing public awareness of diabetes: Studies have shown that increasing public awareness of diabetes through immediate planning and implementation of public health measures and individual interventions is an important component of preventing the occurrence and complications of T2D. [ 11 21 22 23 24 25 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 ]…”