Research article

Trends of obesity and abdominal obesity in Tehranian adults: a cohort study

Farhad Hosseinpanah¹ , Maryam Barzin¹ , Parvin Sarbakhsh Eskandary² , Parvin Mirmiran¹ and Fereidoun Azizi³

¹  Obesity Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

²  Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

³  Endocrine Research Center, Research Institute for Endocrine Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

author email corresponding author email

BMC Public Health 2009, 9:426doi:10.1186/1471-2458-9-426

Published:	23 November 2009

Abstract

Background

Considering the increasing trend of obesity reported in current data, this study was conducted to examine trends of obesity and abdominal obesity among Tehranian adults during a median follow-up of 6.6 years.

Methods

Height and weight of 4402 adults, aged 20 years and over, participants of the Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study (TLGS), were measured in 1999-2001(phase I) and again in 2002-2005(phase II) and 2006-2008 (phase III). Criteria used for obesity and abdominal obesity defined body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 and waist circumference ≥ 94/80 cm for men/women respectively. Subjects were divided into10-year groups and the prevalence of obesity was compared across sex and age groups.

Results

The prevalence of obesity was 15.8, 18.6 and 21% in men and 31.5, 37.7 and 38.6% in women in phases I, II and III respectively (p < 0.001). The prevalence of abdominal obesity in men was 36.5, 57.2 and 63.3% and in women was 76.7, 83.8 and 83.6% in the three periods mentioned (p < 0.001). Men aged between 20-29 years had highest increase rates of obesity and abdominal obesity in phase III in comparison with phase I (with a respective rates of 2.2- and 3.3-fold). In both sexes, an increased trend was observed between phases I and II, whereas between phases II and III, this trend was observed in men, but not in women.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates alarming rises in the prevalences of both obesity and abdominal obesity in both sexes especially in young men, calling for urgent action to educate people in lifestyle modifications.