An ordinary differential equation model for assessing the impact of lifestyle intervention on type 2 diabetes epidemic

Diabetes is a chronic glucose metabolism disorder with severe clinical consequences. The prevalence of diabetes mellitus, in particular Type 2 Diabetes (T2D), is rising dramatically globally. Several clinical trials provide evidence that lifestyle interventions can prevent or delay the development of T2D, but the impact of lifestyle interventions is seldom investigated using a mathematical model. This study assesses the effects of lifestyle interventions on people by constructing an ordinary differential equation model. In this paper, a general model is developed based on the dynamics of T2D by incorporating a control variable termed as healthy lifestyle. The population is subdivided into five classes: susceptible, affected, treated, healthy lifestyle, and prevented. Sensitivity analysis has been performed to identify the most important parameters, and the stability of the equilibrium point is analyzed. Numerical simulations are conducted using a diabetes data set in Bangladesh to investigate the model's dynamic behavior. The results from this study reveal that maintaining a healthy lifestyle slows disease progression. The sensitivity analysis shows that the healthy lifestyle rate, treatment rate, and diabetes rate from susceptible and healthy lifestyle classes are the most sensitive parameters. Moreover, the study also concludes that diabetes cannot completely be eliminated, but with proper control measures, the burden can be reduced. The findings from the study provide strong reasons to continue implementing lifestyle interventions to prevent the global epidemic and its adverse effects.