Diabetes Diagnosis and Screen-Based Sedentary Behavior Among US Adults

Diabetes threatens a patient’s health and quality of life, whereas disease diagnosis itself could potentially serve as a teachable moment for initiating behavior change. This study assessed diabetes diagnosis as a possible teachable moment for screen-based sedentary behavior among US adults. The nationally representative sample (n = 3690) came from the 2005-2006 and 2011-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Self-reported hours spent on screen-based sedentary behavior (television/video watching, computer/digital device use) were measured by the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. Diabetes/prediabetes was identified by fasting plasma glucose and the glycated hemoglobin test. Logistic regressions were conducted to examine the relationship between diabetes diagnosis and screen-based sedentary behavior, adjusting for individual characteristics and sampling design. Compared with those with undiagnosed diabetes, the adjusted values for prevalence of daily television/video watching ≥2 hours (77.45% vs 65.14%), computer/digital device use ≥1 hour (43.20% vs 36.52%), and total screen time (ie, television/video watching plus computer/digital device use) ≥3 hours (66.75% vs 45.78%) were all noticeably higher among adults with diagnosed diabetes, although only the difference in the prevalence of daily total screen time was significant at P <.05. No evidence was found regarding diabetes diagnosis as a teachable moment in reducing screen-based sedentary behavior in US adults.