SELF-REPORTED PREVALENCE OF NON-INSULIN-DEPENDENT DIABETES-MELLITUS IN THE 1ST (ISSEI) AND 2ND (NISEI) GENERATION OF JAPANESE-BRAZILIANS OVER 40 YEARS OF AGE

The immigration of Japanese people to Brazil began in 1908 with two ma jor waves, from 1925 to 1940 and from 1952 to the 1960s. Brazil has th e largest population (about 1288000) of Japanese origin outside Japan with varying age groups. A mortality study revealed that diabetes as a n underlying cause of death was higher in the first-generation Japanes e than in Japan (3.4 vs. 1.9 per 100000 for men, and 7.2 vs. 1.9 for w omen). The self-reported prevalences of known diabetes in subjects age d 40 years or older were obtained by questionnaires from three sources . In six Japanese cultural associations in Sao Paulo city, the prevale nces were 9.7% and 6.9% for the first generation (mean age 61.5 years) and for the second generation (mean age 40.0 years), respectively. Ag e-adjusted prevalences, according to the Brazilian population in the 1 980 national census, were 6.9% and 8.1% for the first and second gener ations. According to a study carried out as a part of a socioeconomic census of the Japanese population in Brazil, the prevalences of diabet es were 7.4% and 5.2%, and the age-adjusted prevalences were 5.3% and 5.8% in the first and second generations, respectively. Another study carried out for employees of a bank, owned by Japanese-Brazilian commu nity members, revealed crude prevalences of diabetes in the first and second generations of 7.1% and 4.2%, and age-adjusted prevalences of 7 .3% and 8.2%, respectively. These data indicate an increased prevalenc e of diabetes in this population compared to Japan, suggesting the imp ortance of environmental factors in the pathogenesis of diabetes.