Relationships Between Family History and Self-Reported Diabetes Status and Alzheimer’s Disease Warning Signs

Abstract

To determine whether familial history is linked for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and diabetes, and examine if a relationship exists between years since diagnosis and understanding of diabetes management and blood glucose testing. Adults aged fifty and older were asked to complete a survey that included family history of diabetes and AD. The survey asked respondents to self-identify diabetes status, their understanding of diabetes management, and the frequency of their blood sugar monitoring. Surveys were distributed in person and online via social media and email. Data were entered into SPSS 26, and Pearson correlations were run to determine whether a significant relationship was present between the variables of interest. There was not a significant relationship between the number of blood relatives with AD and the number of relatives with diabetes (r = 0.140, P = 0.226), but a weak between the total number of relatives with diabetes and self-reported diabetes status (r = 0.278, P = 0.003). While there was not a significant relationship between years since diabetes diagnosis and self-rated understanding of diabetes management (r = 0.197, P = 0.325), there was a strong relationship between years since diagnosis and total number of blood sugar tests taken per week (r = 0.565, P = 0.004). The relationship between number of relatives with diabetes and having diabetes oneself is in line with previous research. Additionally, while diabetics monitor their blood sugar more closely as time goes by, Future efforts are needed to inform diabetics about best practices for blood glucose management. None.