Diabetes Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Diabetes, including details on insulin, type i, type ii, diet, treatment, prevention.

Legacy of diabetes and self-care behavior.

Scollan-Koliopoulos M, O'Connell KA, Walker EA

Department of Graduate Nursing, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Nursing, 65 Bergen Street, Newark, New Jersey 07101, USA.

The effect of multigenerational legacies of diabetes on health beliefs and behaviors was explored. Diabetic participants (N = 123) with family histories of diabetes responded to survey questions about their own diabetes self-care behavior, illness representation (including consequences and controllability of diabetes), recollection of a family member's illness representation and complications, and perceived social consequences of diabetes. Recollections about family members' disease controllability (r = .21, p < .05) and social consequences (r = -.19, p < .05) and participants' own perceptions of controllability were significantly related. Significant associations were also found between perceptions of controllability and general and social consequences with medication adherence (beta =-.33, beta = -36, and beta = -.43, respectively, all p<.05). Findings suggest that explorations of patients' recollections of a family member's experiences with diabetes can affect their illness perceptions and behavior.

Published 1 October 2007 in Res Nurs Health, 30(5): 508-17.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2008 Diabetes Research Today. All Rights Reserved.