Study gives clues to healthcare debate

PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 20 (UPI) -- People given the same information can come away with very different opinions depending on whether they lean right or left politically, U.S. researchers found.

Researchers at the University of Michigan Health System said when given information on the genetic factors that cause diabetes, both Democrats and Republicans equally supported public health policies to prevent the disease.

However, Republicans were less supportive of healthcare policies after reading news reports that people with diabetes got their illness because of social or economic factors, such as lack of neighborhood grocery stores or safe places to exercise. Knowledge of social factors increased Democrats' support, the researchers said.

"When people are given the same information they can come away with very different opinions," Sarah E. Gollust of the University of Pennsylvania, who worked on the study during her doctoral work at University of Michigan, said in a statement.

Study participants viewed news articles about type 2 diabetes on the Internet and then answered questions about their opinions on health policy and their attitudes about people with diabetes.

When each viewed an article on the links between social and neighborhood factors and diabetes, 32 percent of Democrats agreed with social factors' role on health compared to 16 percent of Republicans.

The findings are published in the American Journal of Public Health.