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Association between occupational stressors and type 2 diabetes among Chinese police officers: a 4-year follow-up study in Tianjin, China

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Abstract

Purpose

To explore the relationship between occupational stressors and the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus among police officers.

Methods

Baseline data were collected from policemen who completed the Occupational Stress Inventory-Revised (OSI-R) questionnaire, a self-designed questionnaire, and underwent free clinical measurements at the Medical Center of Police Hospital in Tianjin, China, in April 2007. A total of 5811 policemen participated in follow-up with the dynamic observation of new-onset diabetes (NOD) events occurring annually between 2008 and 2011. Occupational stress was measured by the OSI-R questionnaire, which contains 14 different scales. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to calculate the hazard ratios (HR) of the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) by occupational stressors.

Results

A total of 3.1 % of the participants (n = 179) developed NOD in the follow-up period from 2008 to 2011, and the incidence rates of NOD were 0.58 % in 2008, 0.98 % in 2009, 0.52 % in 2010, and 1.01 % in 2011. Role overload (RO), role boundary (RB), physical environment (PE), interpersonal strain (IS), and physical strain (PHS) were associated with the incidence of T2DM (RO: HR = 1.574, 95 % CI = 1.071–2.372; RB: HR = 1.645, 95 % CI = 1.144–2.365; PE: HR = 2.292, 95 % CI = 1.545–3.400; IS: HR = 1.537, 95 % CI = 1.079–2.191; and PHS: HR = 1.680, 95 % CI = 1.167–2.006) after adjustment for confounding factors. A subgroup Cox regression analysis among traffic control police officers showed the specific work stressors remained robust except RO.

Conclusions

Several aspects of stressors were independent predictors of T2DM in a prospective cohort study in Tianjin, China. This practical information can be applied to the development of psychological interventions against T2DM.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Tianjin scientific and technological support key projects (No. 08ZCGYSF01500) and the Tianjin Municipal Science and Technology Commission. We thank for all those involved in research work.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, No. 22, Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin, 300070, China

      Hao Yu, Jin-chuan Liu, Chen Li, Xi Chen & Nai-jun Tang

    2. Department of Toxicology, School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, No. 22, Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin, 300070, China

      Ya-jiao Fan & Li-xin Zhang

    3. Medical Center of Police Hospital, No. 78, Nanjing Road, Heping District, Tianjin, 300042, China

      Song Yue

    4. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, No. 22, Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin, 300070, China

      Wen-li Lu & Xi-lin Yang

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    1. Hao Yu
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    Correspondence to Nai-jun Tang.

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    H. Yu and J. Liu contributed equally to this work and should be considered co-first authors.

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    Yu, H., Liu, Jc., Fan, Yj. et al. Association between occupational stressors and type 2 diabetes among Chinese police officers: a 4-year follow-up study in Tianjin, China. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 89, 277–288 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-015-1071-9

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