Abstract
Depression and diabetes often co-exist and result in worsening health outcomes. Low-income and demographic variables have been shown to have an effect on both diabetes and depression. The presence of a relationship between low-income, demographic variables, and comorbid diabetes and depression is unclear. This pilot study was designed to compare depressive symptoms as measured by PHQ-9 scores between low-income adults with self-reported type 2 diabetes and those without in relation to gender, age, ethnicity, and education level.|Methods: Low-income adults at a food pantry were given a demographic questionnaire and PHQ-9 to complete. Presence of diabetes was based on self-report. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to compare means and medians of the groups.|Results: Each age, ethnicity, education, and gender cohort’s PHQ-9 scores were compared to the scores of those with diabetes in the same cohort. No statistical significance was found in any category.|Discussion: Limitations included small sample size and reliance on self-report. Research confirms the link between diabetes and depression and confirms as well that low-income and demographic variables impact both diabetes and depression separately. More research needs to be done to examine the impact of low income and demographic variables on comorbid depression and diabetes.