Indian Heart Journal · Jan 16, 2026

Impact of internal migration on cardiovascular disease risk factors: Insights from a large industrial cohort in Ludhiana

By Mohan B, Batta A, Sharma S et al.

BACKGROUND: Amongst the various risk factors for, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), the impact of migration is often underappreciated and underexplored. The aim of the study was to look into the CVD profiles of migrant industrial workers and to explore the impact of duration migration on CVD risk-factors. METHODS: This was an observational, prospective and a multi-center study which recruited migrant industrial workers working across 23 industries from the organized sector in Ludhiana. Age-adjusted regression models were prepared to determine if duration of migration was an independent risk factor for adverse CV health. RESULTS: A total of 11,151 migrant workers (9,158, 82.1 % males) were included in the analysis. The mean age of the cohort was 35.00 ± 10.89 years, with the majority (40.6 %, n = 4528) belonging to the <30 years age group. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes and obesity in the cohort was 19.73 %,4.0 % and 25.9 % respectively. Duration since migration emerged as an independent risk factor for adverse CV health. Age-adjusted models revealed the independent risk of developing obesity, hypertension and diabetes beyond 3, 6 and 12 years since migration respectively [OR = 2.332, 1.401 & 3.462 respectively; p < 0.005 for all]. CONCLUSIONS: The overall age-adjusted prevalence of hypertension was higher amongst migrant workers compared to national average and state wise data for hypertension reflecting the aggravated risk in this cohort. Duration of migration emerged to be an independent predictor of CVD risk with a threshold effect for developing obesity emerging earliest at 3 years since migration.

doi.org/10.1016/j.ihj.2026.01.001Open accessPubMed 41548694Populations