No abstract

Background:Overweight and obesity among children and adolescents is a public health concern.Objective:To assess the prevalence of overweight and obesity and its association with social and environmental determinants among the adolescent school children of Tirupati town of Andhra Pradesh, India.Materials and Methods:Data was collected by interviewer-administered method from school children aged between 12 to 16 years. The sample consisted of 2258 subjects (1097 boys and 1161 girls). Overweight and obesity were defined by body mass index (BMI) based on the current method recommended by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention 2000. Data on social and environmental determinants were collected by using a pre-tested and validated questionnaire.Results:In the present sample, 11.2 percent and 4.8 percent of boys and 10.3 percent and 4.8 percent of girls were overweight and obese. The literacy level of parents, family income and child sleep duration significantly associated with overweight. Parental level of education was a risk factor for overweight (Mother: 1.570; 95% CI: 1.048-2.354). Similarly increase in family income (OR = 1.529; 95% CI: 1.089-2.148) and child sleep duration <7 hrs per day (OR = 2.006; 95% CI: 1.194-3.371) raised children's association in gaining weight.Conclusion:Our study reinforces the burgeoning prevalence of overweight and obesity among the adolescents. Interventional measures taken should consider family, school and physical environment to check the problem of overweight/obesity.

Introduction: Excess abdominal fat is an independent predictor of the risk factors and the morbidity of obesity related diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and cardio vascular diseases. The Waist Circumference (WC) is positively correlated with the abdominal fat. Hence, the waist circumference is a valuable, convenient and a simple measurement method which can be used for identifying the individuals who are at an increased risk for the above mentioned diseases. Objectives:1. To assess the abdominal obesity by measuring the waist circumference among the women who were aged 20 years and above in an urban slum of Chennai, India. 2. To identify the socio demographic factors which were associated with the abdominal obesity in the above study population. Settings and Design:A community based and a cross sectional study was carried out in an urban slum of Chennai, India. Methods and Materials:The present study was undertaken in an urban slum of Chennai city, among the women who were aged 20 years and above. One slum was selected randomly and the households in the slum were sampled by a systematic random sampling method. A predesigned and a pretested questionnaire was used to collect the information regarding the sociodemographic profile of the women. Their waist circumference was measured by using a flexible inch tape.As per the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) and the International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO) (2000), the following cut off values for the waist circumference were used to assess the abdominal obesity for women: WC<80cms -normal and WC > 80cms abdominal obesity.Statistical Analysis: It was done by using the Statistical Package For Social Science (SPSS ), version 11.5. The prevalence was expressed in percentage and the Chi square test was used to find its association with the factors. Results:In the study population, the prevalence of abdominal obesity (WC > 80 cms) was 29.8% (95% Confidence Interval [CI] 25.9-34 %). A significant association was found between the age, religion, a higher socioeconomic status and the abdominal obesity. No significant association was noted between the educational status, occupation, marital status, type of family and the abdominal obesity. Conclusion:Abdominal obesity among the urban slum women is on the rise. The abdominal obesity was found to be signifi cantly higher among the slum women with increasing age and in those who belonged to the muslim religion and to a higher socioeconomic status. InTRODuCTIOnExcess abdominal fat is an independent predictor of the risk factors and the morbidity of obesity related diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and cardiovascular diseases. The Waist Circumference (WC) is positively correlated with the abdominal fat. Hence, the waist circumference is a valuable, convenient and a simple measurement method which can be used for identifying the individuals who are at an increased risk for the above mentioned diseases. The evid...