Mental Disorders Impede Diabetes Care

Patients with schizophrenia and major mood disorders havehigher rates of type 2 diabetes, compared with patients withoutmental illness. New research has found, however, that thesepatients often comprehend less about their disease.

Both disorders affect cognitive function and can impede normalattentiveness, learning, and motivations—essentials in theself-care of type 2 diabetes. The researchers also learned thatpatients with mental illness and diabetes can improve if they aregiven specific instructions about diabetes and how to cope. (Thefindings were reported in Psychosomatics, September 2005.)