Lifestyle in UAE raises expat risk of diabetes

ABU DHABI // Expatriate women from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh who are susceptible to diabetes face an almost three times higher risk of developing the disease after moving to the UAE than they do in their home countries, a new study has found.

The Prevalence of Diabetes among Migrant Women and Duration of Residence in the UAE study, conducted by UAE University, looked at 599 expat women from South Asia, the Philippines and the Middle East, all living in Al Ain.

A similar study on diabetes in male expats is in progress. Researchers found women from the sub- continent at higher risk of developing the disease compared with female expats from Arab countries and the Philippines. Results showed 16.7 per cent of South Asian women who had lived in the UAE for 10 years had type 2 diabetes, compared with 6 per cent outside the country. Of the Arab women who took part in the study, 12.2 per cent were found to have the condition compared with between 4 per cent and 8 per cent in their home countries.

A lack of regular physical exercise and an easily accessible and affordable high- calorie diet compared with their home countries were thought to be at least partially to blame.

“The majority of South Asians in the UAE migrate from rural areas in low-income developing countries and on moving to the UAE will probably experience a change in their nutritional and physical activity environment,” said Prof Syed Mahboob Shah, lead investigator of the study and associate professor at the College of Medicine and Health Sciences at UAEU.

“They walk around all the time in their home countries but when they come here they have access to transportation.”

In contrast, the incidence of diabetes, at 1.7 per cent, was lower in Filipino women who had lived in the UAE than women living in the Philippines, where it was 6 per cent.

Results showed age played a key factor in rates of diabetes among South Asian women, with those over the age of 40 three- and- a- half times more at risk of developing diabetes than younger compatriots.

In countries where physical activity decreases, people’s weight increases, which could lead to more cases of diabetes, said Dr Mahmoud Ben Baraka, consultant endocrinologist at Health Plus Diabetes and Endocrinology Centre in Abu Dhabi.

“The prevalence of diabetes in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh is about 9 per cent,” said Dr Ben Baraka. “If you are in a rural area, your physical activity is usually greater and your access to a calorie-dense diet will be less. Thus, the chance of getting diabetes will also be less.” However, environmental issues may not be entirely to blame because South Asians may also be genetically susceptible to diabetes, said Dr Dinesh Dhanwal, consultant endocrinologist at NMC Specialty Hospital in Abu Dhabi.

The theory of foetal origin of adult diseases claims unfavourable conditions before birth and childhood predispose a person to increased risk of disease in adulthood.

“India was not so advanced 30 years ago, and if birth weights were lower at that time, this could be a possible link,” said Dr Dhanwal. “With that genetic background and sedentary life and food availability, these genes become more active.”

He advised South Asians over the age of 30 to be screened for diabetes and suggested lifestyle changes for those with pre-diabetes, including eating fewer carbohydrates, more protein, fruits and vegetables, exercising and walking after a meal.

In 2015, 35 million people in the Middle East and North Africa had diabetes. That is expected to rise to 72 million by 2040.