Gender and treatment differences in knowledge, health beliefs, and metabolic control in Mexican Americans with type B diabetes

PURPOSE The purpose of this project was to describe metabolic control, know ledge, and health beliefs of Mexican Americans with type 2 diabetes. METHODS The study site was Starr County, Texas, a border community located on the Rio Grande River and bordering northern Mexico. Of the total sample of 360 persons, 252 agreed to participate in this intervention study and we re randomized either to the treatment group or the control group that waite d 2 year to begin the intervention. RESULTS The majority of individuals were Spanish-speaking females with a me an age of 54 years and a mean diabetes duration of 8 years. For those treat ed with diet only, males exhibited higher fasting blood glucose levels than females. Gender effects were seen for cholesterol level, with females exhi biting higher levels than males. Males expressed stronger perceptions of co ntrol and social support for diet. Bivariate relationships were found betwe en acculturation and diabetes Knowledge. The health belief subscales of con trol and impact on job together explained 16% of the variance in HbA(1c) va lues. CONCLUSIONS Males and females held differing beliefs about ability to contr ol their diabetes and degree of social support for diet. The impact of gend er differences on ability to integrate diabetes self-care and on effectiven ess of diabetes programs has not been determined but should be considered i n future research.