Obesity prevalence and its relation with some sociodemographic factors in bank employee of Aurangabad city, Maharashtra, India

Abstract

Obesity is one of the most important public health problems of global significance. 1 The worldwide prevalence of obesity nearly doubled between 1980 and 2014. In 2014, 39% of adults aged 18 years and older were overweight and 11% of men and 15% of women worldwide were obese. Thus, about 2 billion people are overweight and more than half a billion adults worldwide are obese. 2,3 Overweight and obesity are estimated to account for 3.4 million deaths per year and 93.6 million DALYs. 4 India, with 1.2 billion people is the second most populous country in the world and is currently experiencing rapid epidemiological transition. There is rising prevalence of obesity in India. 5-8 The percentage of overweight and obesity increased from 11% in national family health survey (NFHS-2) to 15% in NFHS-3 and more than thrice in urban areas. This may be due to increasing ABSTRACT Background: India is currently experiencing rapid epidemiological transition with rising prevalence of obesity which may be due to increasing adoption of sedentary lifestyle and changing dietary pattern of the urban population. Certain occupations predispose individuals to sedentary lifestyles and some of these are white collar jobs characterized by sitting for long periods of time like financial institutions (banks). The aim and objectives of the study was to know the prevalence of obesity in bank employees and to study associated socioeconomic factors. Methods: A population based cross sectional study was conducted. Banks were listed according to sectors i.e. government, cooperative and private. The banks were selected randomly from these three sectors using stratified proportionate random sampling technique. The study participants were interviewed by the investigator with the help of predesigned proforma which included information about demographic & socioeconomic data, medical and family history, clinical examination, and anthropometric measurements (height, weight, waist and hip circumference). Results: According to BMI classification for Asian population, 47.9% and 29.6% bank employees were found to be overweight and obese (GO) respectively. Whereas 65.0% bank employees had obesity by waist-hip ratio and only 6.25% bank employees had isolated generalized obesity. Overall 17.95% bank employees had isolated abdominal obesity and 44.6% bank employees had combined obesity. Conclusions: The prevalence of generalized as well abdominal obesity was very high among bank employees. The associated risk factors which were found to be significant were age, female gender, higher socioeconomic status, and higher employees' posts.

Prevalence of obesity amongst bank employees in Latur city of Maharashtra, India

“…In the study done at Aurangabad by Hirani et al showed that out of total 240 bank employees, 47.9% and 29.6% bank employees were found to be overweight and obese respectively. 6 The prevalence of obesity by WHR also was high (65%) in this study compared to our study (25.75%). The prevalence of obesity by waist circumference alone was high in our study (18.5%) as compared to (6.5%) in Hirani et al study.…”

“…The prevalence of obesity by waist circumference alone was high in our study (18.5%) as compared to (6.5%) in Hirani et al study. 6 Another study by Singh et al in Jammu and Kashmir on bank employees showed the prevalence of obesity by BMI over 25 as 49.5% in their study. 7 The prevalence of generalized and central obesity was found to be 9% and 69% respectively.…”

“…Therefore, workers in such institutions become susceptible to developing obesity and or overweight which could predispose them to chronic diseases associated with physical inactivity. 6 The prevalence of these risk factors shows upward trend with increasing body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC). Bank employees because of sedentary nature of their job and associated job stress form a high-risk group.…”

Obesity and Musculoskeletal Disorders among Public Sector Bank Employees of Mangaluru Region – A Cross-sectional Study

“…5 In a study conducted on bank employees of Aurangabad, Maharashtra, a higher overall prevalence (77.5%) of overweight and obesity was reported. 6 Many studies have found the prevalence of overweight and obesity to be more than 50%, which is a cause of concern. This could be attributed to the sedentary lifestyle of office employees.…”