Background: Myths prevailing about diabetes in the society have become a major hurdle for its proper treatment and control.
Aim: To find out about various myths related to diabetes and its treatment in the population.
Materials And Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in a teaching hospital of Delhi in 2008. 124 diabetic patients attending the regular diabetic clinic, 78 people who accompanied these patients and 214 non-diabetic people were included in the study. A pre-tested interview schedule with 48 questions was used to get information about sociodemographic characteristics and myths about diabetes. Data was analyzed by Epi info software version 3.2.
Results: The most common myth in the population (22%) was that eating more sugar causes diabetes. Others were: diabetes can only occur in old age, soaking feet in water can help control blood sugar, diabetes is a result of past sins and is cured by spiritual treatment. Myths were significantly more common in females, non-diabetics, less educated group. There was a slightly higher prevalence of myths in Muslim population. 12.1% of diabetics were taking herbal medicines. 15.9% of the diabetics and 26% of non diabetics were unaware that complications could occur if diabetes was uncontrolled. 18.5% of diabetics and 30.1% of non-diabetics were unaware about role of diet and lifestyle measures in control of diabetes.
Conclusions: The prevalence of myths about diabetes is high in North Indian population which could be associated with poor early health seeking behavior and poor compliance with treatment.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2822217 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/0973-3930.54290 | DOI Listing |
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!