Prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity in a sample of Urban adult population within South East of Iran

Objective: Obesity is now considered as a major health challenges in the both developed and developing countries. The prevalence of this phenomenon has been reported up to 36.7% in some of the urban regions of Iran. Since, there has been no previous study regarding prevalence of obesity in the adult population within South East of Iran, this study was carried out in the year 2002 to estimate the prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity in adults 30 years and older in Rafsanjan. Methodology: This survey was a cross sectional study in which a random sample of adults (n=756, age>30) were selected. For each individual a questionnaire was completed, in which height, weight, waist circumference and demographic characteristics were recorded. The overweight and obesity were defined by BMI=25-29.9 and BMI>30, respectively. The abdominal obesity was defined for women and men by waist circumference >88cm and >102cm, respectively. Results: The prevalence of obesity (type 1 and 2) and overweight were 11.6% and 38.2%, respectively. In addition 164 (37.5%) of women and 118 (36.9%) of men were overweight. Seventy eight (18.2%) of women and 15 (4.7%) of men were obese, 248 (56.9%) of women and 52 (16.6%) of men suffered from abdominal obesity. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the obesity and abdominal obesity are among the most important health problems within South East of Iran. Therefore, it can be suggested that an interventional approach is needed in order to change people's lifestyle, which by itself may also have an important effect in reducing morbidity and mortality from other chronic diseases.