Fatemeh Abdollahi
Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Iran
Title: Prevalence of obesity and overweight based on body mass index Z-scores among a group of Iranian adolescences, 2005 to 2014 years
Biography
Biography: Fatemeh Abdollahi
Abstract
The high prevalence of obesity and overweightness has been a major public health focus during past decades. This study assessed the prevalence of obesity/overweightness, its trend and related factors among Mazandaran adolescent’s students. In a descriptive study and using stratified, randomly sampling method, the students’ documents in the first degree of three educational levels; primary, lower secondary and upper secondary were assessed during 2005-2014 years. Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated. BMI Z-score was categorized in three grade; normal (1≤z<- 2), over weight (1≤z<2) and obese (≥2). The prevalence of obesity at each level was investigated. Based on BMI Z-score, 3.1%, 4%, and 2.9% of sample population at ages 7, 12 and 15 years were obese respectively. Moreover, the rate of overweightness increased from 8.3% (98) at age 7 to 10.1% (121) and 10% (119) at ages 12 and 15 years respectively. At the age of 15 years, the rate of obesity and overweight in girls was double that much of the boys (1.9% vs. 1.1% and 7% vs. 3%). There were no significant relationship between obesity/overweightness and parent occupation and education, kind of school as well students’ living places. The prevalence of obesity in comparison to national adolescents’ obesity was low but the prevalence of overweightness was high at each educational level. Intervention programs for the prevention of overweightness should be initiated at primary or secondary school ages.
