Table 1.
Characteristics of participants
| Survey language | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristic, n (%)a | English (n = 311) | Chinese (n = 200) | Malay (n = 218) | p valueb |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 56.31 (11.46) | 59.98 (10.06) | 54.62 (10.36) | < 0.001 |
| Gender | < 0.001 | |||
| Male | 168 (54.0) | 90 (45.2) | 78 (35.8) | |
| Female | 143 (46.0) | 109 (54.8) | 140 (64.2) | |
| Ethnicity | < 0.001 | |||
| Chinese | 185 (59.5) | 200 (100.0) | 2 (0.9) | |
| Malay | 53 (17.0) | 0 (0.0) | 209 (95.9) | |
| Indian | 73 (23.5) | 0 (0.0) | 7 (3.2) | |
| Marital status | 0.020 | |||
| Married | 225 (72.4) | 158 (79.0) | 182(83.9) | |
| Divorced/separated/widowed | 39 (12.5) | 24 (12.0) | 17 (7.8) | |
| Single | 47 (15.1) | 18 (9.0) | 18 (8.3) | |
| Employment status | < 0.001 | |||
| Employed | 157 (50.5) | 72 (36.2) | 101 (46.5) | |
| Retired | 77 (24.8) | 66 (33.2) | 10 (4.1) | |
| Unemployed | 11 (3.5) | 4 (2.0) | 11 (5.1) | |
| Homemaker | 52 (16.7) | 49 (24.6) | 88 (40.6) | |
| Others | 14 (4.5) | 8 (4.0) | 7 (3.2) | |
| Housing type | 0.141 | |||
| GSH with 1–3 rooms | 102 (32.9) | 76 (38.0) | 63 (28.9) | |
| GSH with ≥ 4 rooms/private house | 208 (67.1) | 124 (62.0) | 155 (71.1) | |
| Education | < 0.001 | |||
| No formal qualification | 44 (14.2) | 37 (18.7) | 83 (38.1) | |
| Primary school | 46 (14.8) | 67 (33.8) | 49 (22.5) | |
| Secondary school | 125 (40.2) | 67 (33.8) | 53 (24.3) | |
| Post-secondary | 96 (30.9) | 27 (13.6) | 33 (15.1) | |
| HbA1c (%), mean (SD) | 7.59 (1.72) | 7.34 (1.15) | 6.78 (2.06) | < 0.001 |
| BMI (kg/m2) , mean (SD) | 27.21 (6.24) | 25.19 (4.34) | 27.32 (6.08) | < 0.001 |
| Duration of having T2DM (years) | 0.663 | |||
| < 5 | 127 (41.1) | 84 (42.2) | 83 (38.1) | |
| ≥ 5 | 182 (58.9) | 115 (57.8) | 135 (61.9) | |
| Presence of T2DM-related complicationsc | < 0.001 | |||
| No | 223 (71.7) | 111 (55.5) | 164 (75.2) | |
| Yes | 88 (28.3) | 89 (44.5) | 54 (24.8) | |
| Presence of comorbiditiesd | < 0.001 | |||
| < 2 | 156 (50.2) | 65 (32.5) | 86 (39.5) | |
| ≥ 2 | 155 (49.8) | 135 (67.5) | 132 (60.6) | |
BMI body mass index; HbA1c hemoglobin A1c; SD standard deviation; GHS government-subsidized house; T2DM type 2 diabetes mellitus
aData for each variable are reported in terms of n (%) unless otherwise stated
bThe Chi-square test was used for categorical variables and the ANOVA test for continuous variables
cComplications included stroke, ischemic heart disease, kidney disease, peripheral neuropathy, eye disease, and peripheral vascular disease
dComorbidities included cancer, arthritis, hypertension, high blood cholesterol, asthma, bronchitis, liver disease, metal disorders, urology problems, ear/nose/throat problems, and other chronic conditions