Anxiety boosts progression of prediabetes to type 2 diabetes: findings from the prospective Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg F4 and FF4 studies

Aim To investigate the association between anxiety symptoms and the progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes. Methods A sample of 1708 participants aged 31–82 years from the population‐based Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg F4 and the follow‐up Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg FF4 studies was included. Prediabetes was defined as impaired fasting glucose and/or impaired glucose tolerance, and anxiety status was measured by the generalized anxiety disorder‐7 questionnaire. Newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes cases were identified after 6.5 years (11 102 person‐years) and confirmed by medical records. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were employed to estimate the effect of prediabetes and anxiety on the incidence of type 2 diabetes with different levels of adjustments for potential confounders. The population attributable risk of type 2 diabetes in participants with prediabetes and anxiety was estimated. Results Prediabetes at baseline was prevalent in 247 participants, of whom 77 developed diabetes after follow‐up, accounting for a progression rate of 31%. In participants with prediabetes, high anxiety was associated with a 3‐fold increased risk of progression to type 2 diabetes in comparison with low anxiety, even after accounting for socio‐demographic, lifestyle and metabolic risk factors (OR = 2.82, 95% CI = 0.95–8.37, P = 0.06). A significant proportion of incident type 2 diabetes was attributed to having anxiety in addition to prediabetes (attributable risk proportion: 0.52; 95% CI = 0.004–1.04, P = 0.05). Conclusions Anxiety symptoms independently increase the progression risk of prediabetes to type 2 diabetes and should be routinely considered alongside the traditional risk factors in people with prediabetes. What's new? Although both prediabetes and anxiety are established risk factors for the incidence of type 2 diabetes, the role of anxiety in the progression from prediabetes to diabetes remains inconclusive. The current investigation reveals that anxiety, independently of additional risk factors, boosts the progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes. These findings highlight the significance of screening for anxiety among high‐risk people with prediabetes.