Cancer Prevention & Control Program, Fox Chase Cancer Center, USA.
Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, USA.
Ann Behav Med. 2024 Nov 16;58(12):799-808. doi: 10.1093/abm/kaae056.
The majority of Chinese Americans is foreign-born, and it is well-documented that immigration to the United States (US) leads to increased risk for chronic diseases including type 2 diabetes. Increased disease risk has been attributed to changes in lifestyle behaviors following immigration, but few studies have considered the psychosocial impact of immigration upon biomarkers of disease risk.
To examine associations of psychological stress and social isolation with markers of type 2 diabetes risk over time among US Chinese immigrants.
In this longitudinal study of 614 Chinese immigrants, participants completed assessments of perceived stress, acculturative stress, negative life events, and social isolation annually at three time points. Fasting blood samples were obtained at each time point to measure blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin, and insulin resistance. Mean duration between baseline and follow-up assessments was approximately 2 years.
Increases in migration-related stress, perceived stress and social isolation were associated with significant increases in fasting glucose at follow-up independent of age, body mass index, length of US residence, and other potential covariates. Moreover, increases in glucose varied depending on perceived stress levels at baseline, such that those with higher baseline stress had a steeper increase in glucose over time.
Psychological stress and social isolation are associated with increases in fasting glucose in a sample of US Chinese immigrants. Findings suggest that the unique experiences of immigration may be involved in the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a condition that is prevalent among US Chinese despite relatively low rates of obesity.
大多数美籍华人都是外国出生的，有大量文献记录表明，移民到美国会增加患 2 型糖尿病等慢性病的风险。移民后生活方式的改变被认为是导致疾病风险增加的原因，但很少有研究考虑移民对疾病风险生物标志物的心理社会影响。
研究心理压力和社会隔离与美国华裔移民随时间推移的 2 型糖尿病风险标志物之间的关系。
在这项对 614 名华裔移民的纵向研究中，参与者每年在三个时间点完成对感知压力、文化适应压力、负面生活事件和社会隔离的评估。在每个时间点都采集空腹血样，以测量血糖、糖化血红蛋白和胰岛素抵抗。从基线到随访评估的平均时间间隔约为 2 年。
与年龄、体重指数、在美国的居住时间和其他潜在协变量无关，与移民相关的压力、感知压力和社会隔离的增加与随访时空腹血糖的显著增加有关。此外，血糖的增加取决于基线时的感知压力水平，例如，基线时压力较高的人，随着时间的推移，血糖升高的幅度更大。
在一个美国华裔移民样本中，心理压力和社会隔离与空腹血糖升高有关。研究结果表明，移民的独特经历可能与 2 型糖尿病的发病风险有关，尽管美国华裔的肥胖率相对较低，但他们患这种疾病的风险很高。
