Exercise facility availability and incidence of type 2 diabetes and complications in Spain: A population-based retrospective cohort 2015-2018.

Background: To study the association between exercise facility availability and type 2 diabetes incidence and its complications, and to explore effect modification by socioeconomic status (SES) and sex in the Madrid adult population.

Methods: A multilevel longitudinal design, based on a population-based retrospective cohort including 1,214,281 residents of Madrid (Spain) aged 40-75 years from 2015 to 2018. Outcomes were type 2 diabetes incidence and macrovascular (cardiac ischemia and/or stroke) and microvascular (chronic kidney disease, retinopathy, and/or peripheral vascular disease) complications in those with diabetes at baseline. Exercise facility availability was defined as the count of exercise facilities in a 1000 m street network buffer around each participant's residence. Poisson regression models with robust standard errors were used to estimate the risk ratios (RR). Interactions were explored with SES tertiles and by sex.

Results: Residents living in areas with lower exercise facility availability showed higher risk of type 2 diabetes (RR = 1.25, CI95% 1.21-1.30) as well as macrovascular (RR = 1.09 CI95% 1.00-1.19), and microvascular (RR = 1.10 CI95% 1.01-1.19) complications. Associations were strongest in low SES areas for type 2 diabetes (RR = 1.22, CI95% 1.12-1.32; RR = 0.91, CI95% 0.85-0.98) and microvascular complications (RR = 1.12, CI95% 0,94-1,33; RR = 0.88, CI95% 0.73-1.05).

Conclusions: Living in areas with lower availability of exercise facilities was associated with a greater risk of type 2 diabetes and its complications. Increasing exercise opportunities, particularly in low SES areas, could help reduce the social gradient of diabetes and its complications.