Effect of Habitual Khat Chewing on Glycemic Control, Body Mass Index, and Age at Diagnosis of Diabetes in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Yemen

Khat chewing is common in Yemen. We conducted this study to see if it affected diabetes control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). We studied 1540 patients with type 2 DM attending an endocrinology clinic in Sana'a, Yemen, of which 997 were khat chewers (KC) and 543 were non-khat chewers (NKC). The patients answered a questionnaire regarding khat chewing. Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and body mass index (BMI) were measured. KC had a higher mean HbA1c of 9.8 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 9.6-10) than the NKC, with a mean of 9.1 (95% CI 8.9-9.4) (adjusted odds ratios (AOR) 1.74, P < 0.001) after multivariate regression analysis. KC also had a lower mean BMI, 26.9 (95% CI 26.6-27.2), than the NKC, mean BMI 27.6 (95% CI 27.1-28) (P < 0.01). The mean age at diagnosis of DM among the KC group was 43.3 (10.1) and among the NKC group was 45.9 (11.8) (AOR 1.4 P < 0.008) after multivariate regression analysis. KC patients had a higher mean HbA1c, a lower BMI, and a younger age at diagnosis of type 2 DM when compared with NKC.