Bio-demographical determinants of diabetes among women in reproductive age group (15-49) in India: Evidence from National Family Health Survey (NFHS) of India, 2019-2021

ObjectiveDiabetes is a non-communicable disease, and the prevalence of diabetes is higher in low and middle-income countries. In India, diabetes prevalence has been observed, with some regional variations across the states. This study analyses the current scenario of diabetes in India among women of the reproductive age group between 15 to 49 years.MethodsFor conducting this study, data were gathered from the fifth round of the National Family Health Survey (2019-2021). It is a two-stage cross-sectional stratified sampling survey that employs the probability proportional to size methodology. A total of 6,59,010 individual reproductive-age women have been sampled for this study. Data were analyzed using the Stata version 14 software. A binary logistic model was carried out to know the relationships between diabetes and various socioeconomic and demographic variables. In addition, the adjusted odds ratio was reported with a 95% confidence interval.ResultsThe result shows that about 1.65% of reproductive age group women in India are diabetic with the highest in Goa (4.09%) and the lowest in Nagaland (0.81%). Further, in urban areas, the women's diabetes rate is 16% higher than in the rural areas. Besides, diabetes is strongly correlated with obese reproductive age-group women who are above 35 years and reside in urban areas with higher socioeconomic status.ConclusionThis study suggests that there is an urgent need for frequent monitoring of glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c). Besides, a spatially-optimized target-oriented policy framework is needed instead of a comprehensive national policy to tackle diabetes problems in the country.