Food security and the risk of diabetes mellitus

Authors

Keywords:

diabetes mellitus; food security; healthy lifestyle; nutritional status

Abstract

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus causes complications that affect patients' functional capacity and quality of life; nutritional disorders are a risk factor for the disease; however, it remains unclear whether food insecurity increases the risk of its development.

Objective: To analyze the relationship between food security levels and the risk of developing diabetes mellitus in adult populations residing in rural areas.

Methods: A basic, descriptive, cross-sectional, and correlational study was conducted, including 459 adults residing in rural areas, of whom 210 comprised the research sample. Their general characteristics were determined, as well as their risk of developing diabetes mellitus using the Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Risk Assessment Form, and their food security was assessed using the Latin American and Caribbean Food Security Scale. Spearman correlation test was used to identify the relationship between these two variables.

Results: The average age was 58.62 years, with a predominance of women (60.95%) and individuals of normal weight (59.52%). Nutritional disorders related to excess were identified in 40.48% of the study participants. 47.14% presented a slightly elevated risk of developing diabetes mellitus, and 56.66% experienced some degree of food insecurity. A correlation of 0.67 was identified between food insecurity and the risk of diabetes mellitus.

Conclusions: There is a moderate positive correlation between food insecurity and the risk of developing diabetes mellitus.

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References

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Published

2026-09-03

How to Cite

1.
Guallo Paca MJ, Rios Guarango PA, Peñafiel Salazar D de los Ángeles, Silva Jara DJ. Food security and the risk of diabetes mellitus. Rev. cuba. med. mil [Internet]. 2026 Sep. 3 [cited 2026 Sep. 5];55(3):e026077376. Available from: https://revmedmilitar.sld.cu/index.php/mil/article/view/77376

Issue

Vol. 55 No. 3 (2026): July - September (in Progress)

Section

Research Article

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Copyright (c) 2026 Mariana Jesús Guallo Paca, Patricia Alejandra Rios Guarango, Dayanara de los Ángeles Peñafiel Salazar, Darwin Javier Silva Jara

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