Study on the epidemiological characteristics of overweight and obesity among population aged eighteen and over in Guangdong Province in 2002

Objective To describe the epidemiological charactenstics of overweight and obesity among people aged 18 and over in Guangdong province in 2002, and to identify the populations and regions under high risk. Methods Cross-sectional survey was used through sanipling on multi-stage randomized clusters. Data of socialeconomic status were collected by face-to-face mterview. Data on weight and height was obtained through physical check-ups Results A sample size of 15 130 people and the mean body mass mdex (BMI) was 22.03± 3.38 with no siginificant difference between males and females. However the significant difference was seen between cities and rural areas. The crude prevalence rate of overweight and obesity were 16 8% and l 8%, and the age-adjusted rate were 15.0% and 1.7%, respectively. The crude rate of overweight m cities (24.8%) and males (17 5%) were higher than that m rural areas (9.4%) and females (16 2%). The crude rate of obesity m cities was seen higher than that m the rural areas, but not significantly different between females and males The results of logistic regression analysis showed that the major risk factors mfluencing overweight would include household income, age, gender, smoking habits,physical exercises and location of residence Conclusion About one sixth of the citizens m Guangdong province were considered to be overweighted and obesive had become an important public health problem Integrated measures must be taken for prevention and control