Trends in overweight and obesity in pre-school children in urban areas of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, from 2002 to 2005

Abstract

ObjectiveTo assess the trends in overweight and obesity in pre-school children in urban areas of Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam, over the period 2002 to 2005.DesignTwo cross-sectional studies were conducted in 2002 and 2005. Multistage cluster sampling was used in both surveys to select the subjects. Sociodemographic information was collected using a self-administered questionnaire given to parents in 2002 and using an interview-administered questionnaire to parents in 2005. Weight and height were measured using the same standard methods in both surveys. BMI (kg/m2) was calculated and overweight/obesity was defined using the age- and sex-specific BMI cut-off points proposed by the International Obesity Taskforce.Subjects and settingChildren aged 4 to 5 years, attending pre-schools in urban areas of HCMC, Vietnam, in 2002 (n492) and 2005 (n670).ResultsThe prevalence of overweight and obesity almost doubled from 2002 to 2005 (21·4 % and 36·8 %, respectively). The increase was more evident in less wealthy districts than in wealthy districts. The proportion of boys classified as obese in 2005 (22·5 %) was three times that in 2002 (6·9 %).ConclusionThe prevalence of overweight and obesity has increased rapidly in children aged 4 to 5 years in urban areas, and especially in less wealthy districts, over a 3-year period. These results signal an urgent need for prevention programmes to control and reverse this rapid upward trend in overweight and obesity in young children in HCMC.

Prevalence and incidence of overweight and obesity among Vietnamese preschool children: a longitudinal cohort study

“…However, in general, the prevalence of obesity among the urban boys was higher than in the urban girls and the change between 2013 and 2016 was larger in the urban boys than in the urban girls. Larger increase of obesity for boys than girls has been reported in preschool age children [28] and in older children [19, 26]. In the analysis of changes within the cohort, we found that the difference occurs mainly because more obese urban boys continued to remain obese and that normal urban boys became obese more often than urban girls.…”

“…Cross-sectional studies on preschool age children (3–6 years) in the urban area of Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) using the same definition showed that the prevalence increased from 21.4% in 2002 to 36.8% in 2005 [28]. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s largest city, located in the south, is the economic center of the country.…”

The levelling off of the obesity epidemic since the year 1999 – a review of evidence and perspectives

“…Among French adults, an increase in obesity was found in manual workers, but not in management professionals, office/service personnel and intermediate white collar professionals between 2001 and 2005 (47). In Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, the increase in obesity was most pronounced in the less wealthy districts (31). In contrast with these studies, two independent studies from France did not find differences in the obesity trend across SES groups in 3‐ to 14‐year‐old children between 1999 and 2007 (16) or in 7‐ to 9‐year‐old children between 2000 and 2007 (21).…”

“…Stability in the prevalence was found in Russian boys and girls (29). In Asia, a decrease in the prevalence was observed in Japanese boys and girls (30), whereas a continuously strong increase was evident in Chinese and Vietnamese children (31,32). In Australian boys and girls, the obesity prevalences were stable (33,34).…”

Is the prevalence of overweight and obesity declining among 4‐year‐old Swedish children?

“…The findings add to similar results from recent reports concerning school‐aged children from Scotland (9,10) and Sweden (11,12), indicating that the ‘obesity epidemic’ among younger children, but not adolescents (13), could be reaching its peak, at least in some countries. In other parts of the world, the prevalence figures among pre‐school children are still on the rise, although starting from a lower level (14). The explanation to the decline found is open for discussion.…”