Dear Tawakalitu,

As I am African - Asian lived in England but  get diabetes in Egypt. However, If I had not diabetes in Egypt probably I get diabetes in England because of Stress and Obesity.

Studies indicate that immigrants from Arab countries to Israel indicate that they got diabetes probably because  type of diet specifically lots of sugars, that people did not use in their countries,  we have Greeks and others in the UK as well.

All the best 

Aly

Hi Alloh

There is extensive research work going on your research area. These are someof the researchers on what you intend doing.

www.researchgate.net/profile/Herbert_Jelinek2

www.researchgate.net/profile/Ezekiel_Nwose

Yes Aly, i know diet is an important contributor, however, some studies have reported how African diet promote good health while others reported poor dietary habit among this population. Plus i want to consider all possible factors, not diet only and the mechanisms on how these factors contribute to diabetes among the population of interest.  

Thank you Sumankuuro, will check out the links attached. 

I  believe  is  the  same  reason  generally  concerning  the  immigrants - second , third  generation  being  already  immersed  in  the  lifestyle  and  nutrition  pattern  of  the  new  country (  see  "China  Study"  or  other  studies similar ) .  And  definitely ,  not  in a  good  direction !  

The main factors are those which contributes to the epidemiological transition   from the transmissible diseases mortality  to the non transmissible metabolic diseases  morbidity and mortality: nutrition and sedentarity. The  immigrants adopt the Western nutrition with its cheapest components, and Western lifestyle with sedentarity

Africa is a big place, and we can't generalise. However, in my experience in central and eastern Africa, people put sugar in tea, but only had a few cups a day, and working people often had fizzy drinks at lunchtime, or when entertaining visitors. However meals were mostly  home-cooked and savoury, with often home grown vegetables. Here so much food is available ready prepared, and with sugar in most of it. So fructose consumption goes up as people adopt the habits of Westerners. Vitamin D goes down, with the lack of sunshine. Magnesium intake drops, as consumption of dried beans and fresh vegetables goes down. A more refined diet has less chromium. Artificial sweeteners also encourage diabetes. All these factors can contribute to type two diabetes.

It is very true that sugar consumption in the West needs to be curbed, but if it is replaced by artificial sweeteners, I suspect that matters will go from bad to worse.

basically i agree with mariette gerber that shgifting to west or uk one becomes more sedentary and adopt to their eating styles with lots of fast food which then leads to greater obesity leading to hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance terminating in type 2 dm

I suggest sugar causes obesity and sugar causes diabetes. Yes, adipose tissue does have metabolic effects, but blaming obesity as a presumed cause of various diseases ignores the metabolic effects of fructose.

I agree with all the points mentioned: diet, sedentary lifestyle, acculturation to western lifestyle, policy and environmental problems, etc.  These are all research topics to address.

I am a Peruvian doctor (Latin American) and probably, like Africans have undergone a change in our food cultural anthropology, but in recent decades there have been elements of great importance in the pathophysiology of chronic diseases that suggest them into account: Disruptors Endocrinologists.

eating food that contain sugar. People have to go for more of vegetables and fruits. 

eating food extra their nutrition: many carbohidrates, sugar . Low  body activity

Yes these are all the implication factors that have been mentioned, however, there are other factors that indirectly contribute to some of the mentioned factor and the mechanisms involved as that is actually the interest of my research. Thanks to you all for contributing to my question, it has really given me more things to consider in this area. 

Lifestyle changes of course are very important.  However, we have found with our work recently in Texas and North Carolina, that there is high prevalence of PTSD, stress, anxiety, and depression among African and other immigrants associated with emigrating, enculturation, job insecurity, housing, and resulting morbidity.  We have begun developing not only lifestyle programs related to healthy behavior change, but also addressing the underlying primary anxiety, stress, trauma, and depression-related conditions.  Hope this is helpful to you.  Mark 

If we consider the whole life course, Africans will generally be born undernourished by undernourished mothers, live their early life with little but healthy food and lots of activity, and then migrate into affluence in Europe/UK - energy-dense food, fat, sugar, less activity and sleep deprivation, stress of the new environment and pressure from home. Now, consider Barker Hypothesis: that reduced foetal growth is strongly associated with a number of chronic conditions later in life.

This is an area of my study currently. The title of my research is ' What are potential factors contributing to Type II Diabetes among Sub-Saharan African migrants in Australia'. I collected data on Acculturation, Perceived discrimination, Depression, Anxiety, Stress, Diet and physical Activity. I am currently analyzing these complex data and hope I will get something reasonable to explain the rapid chronic related morbidity in Sub-Saharan African population here in Australia.

However, concerning the importance of the research area, I encourage you to go ahead and collect the data based on your objectives to answer your research questions.

Thank you Paul, it sounds like we are working on similar project area. I hope to read your publication (s) of your findings as i am only just starting and havent collected data yet.