Stages of change for physical activity and dietary habits in persons with type 2 diabetes included in a mobile health intervention: the Norwegian study in RENEWING HEALTH

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate stages of change for physical activity and dietary habits using baseline data from persons with type 2 diabetes included in a mobile health intervention. We examined the associations between stages of change for physical activity change and dietary change, and between stages of change for each behavior and individual characteristics, health-related quality of life, self-management, depressive symptoms, and lifestyle. Research design and methods We examined 151 persons with type 2 diabetes with an glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level ≥7.1%, aged ≥18 years at baseline of a randomized controlled trial, before testing a mobile app with or without health counseling. Stages of change were dichotomized into ‘pre-action’ and ‘action’. Self-management was measured using the Health Education Impact Questionnaire (heiQ) where a higher score reflects increased self-management, and health-related quality of life was measured with the Short-Form-36 (SF-36). Logistic regression modeling was performed. Results The median HbA1c level was 7.9% (7.1–12.4), 90% were overweight or obese, and 20% had ≥3 comorbidities. 58% were in the preaction stage for physical activity change and 79% in the preaction stage for dietary change. Higher scores of self-management were associated with an increased chance of being in the action stage for both dietary change and physical activity change. Higher body mass index was associated with an 8% reduced chance of being in the action stage for physical activity change (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.86 to 0.99). Conclusions Being in the action stage was associated with higher scores of self-management, crucial for type 2 diabetes. Over half of the participants were in the preaction stage for physical activity and dietary change, and many had a high disease burden with comorbidities and overweight. Trial registration number NCT01315756.