Diet-Related Chronic Diseases Among a Multi-Ethnic Group of Uninsured Adults

OBJECTIVES: The prevalence of diet-related chronic diseases, such as obesity, hypertension and type 2 diabetes, among adults in the U.S. is of increasing import during the COVID-19 pandemic. These conditions are among the top risk factors associated with severe COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to assess the of diet-related diseases among a multi-racial/ethnic uninsured group in South Florida. METHODS: Electronic heath records of adult patients (N = 272) from a free clinic in South Florida, a 4-week pre COVID-19 pandemic de-identified dataset was analyzed. Presence of diet-related conditions for each patient was quantified. Numerical and categorical data were compared using independent t-test and Chi-Squared test, respectively. Spearman`s correlation, multi-linear regression, and binary regression models were used to assess the relationship between the variables. RESULTS: The sample included females (65%) and males (35%). The mean age was 49.08 ± 14.56 years. There were 26.5% Whites, 33.8% Blacks, 35.6% Asians/Asian-Indians, and 1.1% American Indians. About 24% were Hispanic/Latino. The mean BMI was 29.45 ± 6.76 kg/m² (n = 250). Overall, 87% of patients had at least one diet-related condition with overweight/obesity being the most observed (75.2%), followed by hypertension (39%), dyslipidemia (27.2%), and diabetes (23.9%). The inter-racial analysis revealed that BMI is a significant predictor of prevalence of hypertension among Whites (P = 0.008) and Blacks (P = 0.002), but not Asians/Asian-Indians (P = 0.536). BMI was a significant predictor of prevalence of dyslipidemia (P = 0.027) and type 2 diabetes (P = 0.006) among Hispanics/Latinos. Bivariate analysis showed a 70.8% co-incidence of hypertension and a 64.4% co-incidence of dyslipidemia among adults with type 2 diabetes. Co-incidence of hypertension among adults with dyslipidemia was at 73%. CONCLUSIONS: High rate of diet-related chronic diseases was found among the multi-ethnic group of uninsured adults in this study. This supports the need for increased patient-education regarding nutrition in free clinic settings. Nutrition programs tailored for low economic resources and culturally appropriate dietary recommendations could assist uninsured patients with management of their diet-related chronic diseases. FUNDING SOURCES: This research was supported by an NIH sub-award.