Adherence to Medication, Diet and Physical Activity and the Associated Factors Amongst Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

Introduction The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) has increased considerably while the outcome of diabetic management is suboptimal. In order to promote diabetic management, associated factors for adherence to medications, diet, and physical activity (PA) need to be more clearly identified amongst patients with T2D. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted on 206 men and 294 women amongst patients with diabetes who were registered in ten special diabetic clinics in Shiraz, Iran from November 2018 to April 2019. Levels of adherence to medication, Mediterranean diet (MD), and physical activity were measured with validated and appropriate questionnaires. Results Mean age (± SD) was 56.92 ± 0.52 years and 294 (58.8%) were female. Data showed that reduced adherence to medication, MD, and PA increased glycated hemoblobin (HbA1c). Adherence to medication among low, moderate, and high levels was 27.2%, 59.2%, and 13.6%, respectively. Associated factors such as 50–64 years of age, at least 65 years of age, overweight, obese, divorced widow, smoker, and ex-smoker had a significant influence on adherence to medication, P = 0.017, P = 0.018, P = 0.008. P = 0.045, P = 0.026, P