Diabetes Risk Perception and Intention to Adopt Healthy Lifestyles Among Primary Care Patients

OBJECTIVE - To examine perceived risk of developing diabetes in primary care patients. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS - we recruited 150 nondiabetic primary care patients. We made standard clinical measurements, collected fasting blood samples, and used the validated Risk Perception Survey for Developing Diabetes questionnaire. RESULTS - Patients with high perceived risk were more likely than those with low perceived risk to have a family history of diabetes (68 vs. 18%; P < 0.0001) and to have metabolic syndrome (53 vs. 35%; P = 0.04). However, patients with high perceived risk were not more likely to have intentions to adopt healthier lifestyle in the coming year (high 26.0% vs. low 29.2%; P = 0.69). CONCLUSIONS - Primary care patients with higher perceived risk of diabetes were at higher actual risk but did not express greater intention to adopt healthier lifestyles. Aspects of health behavior theory other than perceived risk need to be explored to help target efforts in the primary prevention of diabetes.