Knowledge and practices related to diabetes mellitus among adults with diabetes in the Mopani District, Limpopo Province, South Africa

Abstract

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) among black South Africans is on the increase because of population ageing, unhealthy lifestyles, and obesity. Knowledge about DM and appropriate practices related to DM are keys to its proper management.Aim: To assess the knowledge and practices related to DM among black South Africans aged 40 years and older with DM.Setting: The study was conducted in seven government health care facilities in the Mopani District.Method: This was a health facility-based cross-sectional quantitative study. Structured interviews were used to obtain information which included socio-demographic profiles as well as knowledge about DM and its ocular complications.Results: Participants (N = 225) included 161 (71.6%) women and 64 (28.4%) men aged 40–90 years (mean and standard deviation of 61.5 ± 10.49 years). Many (68.3%) did not know the types of DM and only 32.4% knew the type of DM they had. Many knew about the importance of special diet (84.5%) and physical activity (64.4%) in DM management; however, only 52% knew about the importance of losing weight. Many (71.5%) followed a special diet as advised, only 29.1% always tried to lose weight, and 48.3% engaged in physical activity. Many (82.6%) knew that DM could cause vision problems, but only 49.3% have had their eyes examined. Most (99.5%) of those on oral medication and those on insulin (93.1%) reported using their treatment as prescribed.Conclusion: The knowledge and practices related to DM among the participants were good in certain aspects but poor in others, suggesting the need for programmes on DM awareness in this population.Keywords: Knowledge; practices; diabetes mellitus; Mopani District; South Africa

Recommended dietary practice and associated factors among patients with diabetes at Debre Tabor General Hospital, northwest Ethiopia: institutional-based cross-sectional study design

“…Patients who did not get diabetic nutrition education were more likely to had poor dietary practice as compared with those of who got diabetic nutrition education. This finding is in line with the study done on diabetic OPD of three selected teaching hospitals (tirunesh beijing, black lion specialised and saint paul specialised hospitals), 31 China, 32 Iran and Ankara, 33 Addis Abeba, Ethiopia, 20 South Africa 34 and Malaysia. 35 This might be due to the shortage of skilled nurse, dietician/nutritionist and other trained healthcare professional in the principles of diabetic nutrition in the hospital.…”

“…Studies done on United Arab Emirates, Nepal, Riyadh of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Iran 13–17 and similar studies in South Africa, Egypt and Ethiopia showed the dietary practice of patients with diabetes were inadequate. 18–20 …”

Associated Factors with Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Type II Diabetic Patients in Ambo University Referral Hospital, Ethiopia

“…Knowledge is the greatest weapon in the fight against diabetes mellitus. It is therefore imperative that people with DM and their family members understand the basic facts, such as the type they have, signs and symptoms, treatments, preventive measures, and the importance of maintaining good glycemic control [4,25] emphasized that selfmanagement of patients with T2DM largely depends on the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP). A study done in Northwest Ethiopia revealed that about more than 51% and 60.1% of T2DM patients had poor knowledge and poor attitude, respectively [2].…”

Diabetes mellitus in primary and secondary schools in Africa: an exploratory review

“…Knowledge of DM is crucial in prevention, management, and control of the disease. Various populationbased studies in Africa have reported inadequate knowledge of DM among adults [21][22][23][24][25][26][27]. However, there is a paucity of studies assessing the knowledge of DM among teachers in Africa.…”