Diabetes among adults in Bangladesh: changes in prevalence and risk factors between two cross-sectional surveys

Objective/research question To investigate the change in the prevalence and risk factors of diabetes among adults in Bangladesh between 2011 and 2018. Design The study used two waves of nationally representative cross-sectional data extracted from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Surveys in 2011 and 2017-2018. Setting Bangladesh. Participants 14 376 adults aged >= 35 years. Primary outcome Diabetes mellitus (type 2 diabetes). Results From 2011 to 2018, the diabetes prevalence among adults aged >= 35 years increased from 10.95% (880) to 13.75% (922) (p<0.001), with the largest-relative increase (90%) among obese individuals. Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified age and body mass index (BMI) were the key risk factors for diabetes. Adults who were overweight or obese were 1.54 times (adjusted OR (AOR): 1.54, 95% CI: 1.20 to 1.97) more likely to develop diabetes than normal-weight individuals in 2011, and 1.22 times (AOR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.00 to 1.50) and 1.44 times (AOR: 1.44, 95% CI: 1.13 to 1.84) more prone to develop diabetes in 2018. Other significant risk factors for diabetes were marital status, education, geographical region, wealth index and hypertension status in both survey years. Conclusion A high prevalence of diabetes was observed and it has been steadily increasing over time. To enhance diabetes detection and prevention among adults in Bangladesh, population-level interventions focusing on health education, including a healthy diet and lifestyle, are required.