Obesity prevalence and Related factors in north Khorasan high school students

Background and Objectives: Obesity is the most important nutritional problem among teenagers in developed countries and its resulted handicaps is the main nutritional and health issues. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity and their related factors among high school students aged 14-17 years old in North Khorasan province. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 450 high school students who were in first, second and third stage. Samples were selected by random cluster sampling. Overweight and Obesity were determined according to body mass index (BMI) more than 85 percentile for corresponding with sex and age. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 16. Results: The mean BMI were significantly higher among female students. The prevalence of overweigh and obesity was two times higher in females in three age categories. Mean height of males in three age categories was higher the 50 percentile of CDC chart, and mean height of female only in 14-year category was correspond with 50 percentile. There was a statistical significant relation between BMI with sex, job, family income, hours working with computer and fathers’ BMI. Conclusion: appropriate nutritional intervention and educational program to increase the knowledge of families about the proper nutrition, especially in mothers are the best way to prevent and control obesity among children.