Higher Ambient Temperature Is Associated with Worsening of HbA1c Levels in a Saudi Population

Abstract

Ambient temperature is predicted to rise in Saudi Arabia, and how this will impact the health of its population has not been investigated. Saudi Arabia is one of the top ten countries with the highest prevalence of diabetes. The current study investigates the correlation between ambient temperature and HbA1c levels in a group of Saudis in Riyadh. Age, gender, and HbA1c data for six years were obtained from patients’ records. The maximum daily temperature of Riyadh city for the same period were obtained. A total of 168,614 patient records were obtained. There was a statistically significant positive correlation between ambient temperature and HbA1c levels, where for each 1°C increase in average weekly temperature HbA1c increased by 0.007%. Patients were at high risk of having HbA1c ≥ 7% in high and moderate temperature than in low temperature (P < 0.001, odds ratio (OR): 1.134, and P < 0.001, odds ratio (OR): 1.034; respectively). The mean of HbA1c in females (7.27 ± 1.96) was significantly lower than in males (7.40 ± 1.86), and the probability of males having HbA1c ≥ 7% was about 17.4% higher than females. However, the HbA1c levels in females were significantly more affected by rising temperature compared to males (B = 0.003, P = 0.008). Overall, rise in ambient temperature is associated with worsening HbA1c, which could be harmful to the health of Saudis suffering from diabetes. Possible reasons for the increase in HbA1c could include reduced physical activity, reduced sunlight exposure, and dehydration during hot weather. More research on the relationship between climate change and public health in Saudi Arabia is needed. Funding Statement: This study is a part of the PhD research project of Abdullah S. Alghamdi who is supported and funded by the General Directorate of Medical Services of the Interior Ministry in Saudi Arabia. Declaration of Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Ethics Approval Statement: Ethical approvals were obtained from De Montfort University (Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Research Ethics Committee) and Security Forces Hospital (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia). All obtained data were performed in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations.