Recently Arrived Migrants in Scania, Sweden, Have More Risk Factors for Type 2 Diabetes than the General Population

Slobodan Zdravkovic ¹ Mathias Grahn ² Elisabeth Mangrio ¹ Margareta Rämgård ¹ Magdalena Annersten Gershater ^1*

• ¹ Department of Care Science, Faculty of Health and Society, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden
• ² Malmö Municipality, Malmo, Sweden

Introduction:The prevalence of type 2 diabetes has increased worldwide, where the highest prevalence has been found in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Effective measures must be taken to prevent or delay the occurrence of type 2 diabetes and its complications. The present study aimed to investigate the correlation between factors linked to risk for type 2 diabetes, individually and cumulatively, and established diabetes in recently arrived migrants from Iraq and Syria in Scania and compare it to the rest of the population.A cross-sectional survey was used to compare data between a sample of recently arrived migrants and a sample from the rest of the population in Scania, Sweden.The prevalence of self-reported diabetes was significantly higher among recently arrived migrants (6.9%) compared to the rest of the population (4.9%). High blood-pressure, unhealthy weight, physical inactivity, and older age increased the risk for self-reported diabetes solely but also cumulatively.It is important to identify individuals with a high risk of diabetes and put preventive efforts into combating risk factors for diabetes. Targeting specific risk factors significantly reduces the risk of developing this disease.