As a result of rapid economic development, lifestyle, eating habits and disease patterns changed in Taiwan. In addition fast pace of life, stress, less exercise, eating habits influenced by western country and the prevalence of fast-food culture, metabolic diseases become a healthy killer of people. The major causes of death changed from infectious diseases in 1952 to chronic diseases now.
According to the statistics of Department of Health, Executive Yuan, R.O.C., diabetes was the fourth of the major causes of death in 2007.
Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorders, genetic, age, obesity, eating and living habits are closely related. Age is the factor to increase the incidence of diabetes, and because of Taiwan enters into the aging society gradually that is more people suffer from diabetes will be expected.
In view of the above reasons, the study used the database of "to investigate the health status and nutrition of the elderly from 1999 to 2000 in Taiwan" and the people over 65 years of age with diabetes in that database were enrolled to the study. The correlation between the risk factors such as obesity, abdominal obesity, hypertension, low level of high-density cholesterol (HDLC), high level of triglyceride (TG) and lifestyle and eating patterns were analyzed.
The factors include: age, sex, marital status, education level, native place, household income, obesity, abdominal obesity, hypertension, low level of high- density cholesterol, high level of triglyceride, eating habits, smoking, drinking, betel nut chewing and exercise habits were analyzed.
This study showed that in Taiwan area, the prevalence of the people over 65 years of age with diabetes was 18.7%. Logistic regression showed that obesity,
abdominal obesity, high level of triglycerides, household income and whole milk consuming were correlated with diabetes. The incidence of diabetes increased to 1.51-fold of normal population (OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.04 ~ 2.18) in obese people, 1.71-fold increased in abdominal obesity (OR 1.71, 95% CI 1.24 ~ 2.37), 1.92-fold increased in high triglycerides (OR 1.92, 95% CI 1.17 ~ 3.13), 1.71-fold increased in monthly household income higher than 50,000 (OR 1.71, 95% CI 1.04 ~ 2.82), but monthly whole milk consuming more than 5 times the incidence of diabetes was reduced to 0.62-fold of normal population (OR value of 0.62,95% CI 0.40 ~ 0.96).
