People with type 1 diabetes who lived in areas with little green space were more likely to have high blood pressure, but odds were lower for those exposed to more air pollution, according to study data.
In an analysis of data from the T1D Exchange clinic registry, presented at the Association of Diabetes Care and Education Specialists annual meeting, researchers analyzed associations between environmental risk factors and high BP among adults and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Jorden Rieke, BSN, RN, CCRN, a nursing PhD student and predoctoral fellow at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, said the findings were mixed: People living in areas with little vegetation had higher odds of high BP, but those living in areas with more air pollution had lower odds for elevated BP in this sample.
“[Providers should] assess environmental risk in conjunction with assessing cardiometabolic profiles in diabetes care and diabetes education,” Rieke said during a presentation. “If someone’s goals are to lose weight and to get more physical activity, how does their environment impact that? Is there something we can look at and assess that we may not be thinking of?”
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Rieke was supported in this work by her mentors, Stephanie Griggs, PhD, RN, FAAN, assistant professor at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University.