Social vulnerability and hypoglycemia among patients with diabetes

Lower-income populations are hit harder by the diabetes epidemic as regards both prevalence and the risk of complications. Food Insecurity is one of the mechanisms through which poverty may predispose people with low socio-economic status to poorer control and higher complication rates. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization defined food security as "the right to have access to sufficient nutritional and culturally acceptable food choices." Adults suffering from diabetes with limited income have a 40% greater chance of having food insecurity and an inadequate blood glucose control. Such patients have a two-fold greater risk of developing severe hypoglycemia. In addition, several studies have shown that social vulnerability resulting from food insecurity, low socioeconomic status, low educational levels, and poor health education is an independent risk factor for hypoglycemia, even after conventional predictors are controlled. This review analyzes the literature available on social vulnerability as a non-conventional risk factor for development of hypoglycemia in diabetic subjects.