Prevalence of obesity in diabetic patients in the north west of Libya

Diabetes mellitus, or simply “diabetes”, has been commonly defined as a metabolic disorder that interferes with a body’s ability to efficiently turn food into energy. Although the disorder has many different causes, the primary characterization of diabetes is a high level of blood glucose accompanied by disturbed metabolism of fats, proteins and carbohydrates due to defective insulin production or uptake by the body. The main objective of this study is to assess the effect of obesity and lifestyle on diabetes. A total of 500 diabetic patients (215 males and 285 females) of different ages from six primary health care centers in northwestern Libya participated in the study, which was conducted from November 2008 to the end of April 2009. As well, interviews were carried out using a questionnaire to compile information on the patients regarding age, sex, residence, height, and weight. In the study, body mass index was formulated by dividing each participant’s weight (in kg) by his or her height (m2). The results of the investigation indicate that the age at diagnosis ranges between 10-85 years, with a mean age of 54.84 ± 13.73 years. About 36% of the diabetic patients in the study were overweight and 44.4% were obese (males 39.07% and 34.42%; females 33.68% and 51.93%, respectively). Obesity was more prevalent among females than males. Only 96 (19.2%) of the 500 patients were on a diet regimen. It was found that mean BMI was 29.53 kg/m2± 5.07 and mean blood sugar 186.62 ± 69.40 mg/dl.