Overweight and obesity among schoolchildren in Manipur, India.
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Date
2010-09
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Abstract
Background. The prevalence of overweight and obesity
and their associated factors among schoolchildren in Manipur
has not been studied.
Methods. We did a cross-sectional study among 3356
schoolchildren of classes VIII to XII in Imphal West district,
Manipur between September 2005 and August 2006. The
characteristics of the respondents and related variables such as
parental build, watching television, eating habits, playing of
video/computer games and outdoor games, dietary pattern
and knowledge of obesity were assessed using a questionnaire.
Height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, fat
percentage, fat mass and fat-free mass were measured. Body
mass index (BMI) and waist–hip ratio for each student were
calculated.
Results. The BMI of the sampled students was lower than
the corresponding WHO and International Obesity Task
Force standards. Using the WHO standard, the prevalence of
overweight was 4.2% and of obesity 0.8%. Using multivariate
logistic regression, mother being reported to be obese (OR
1.9, 95% CI 1.4–2.6), watching television for >2 hours a
day (OR 2.052, 95% CI 1.191–3.536), higher family
income (OR 5.844, 95% CI 2.135–15.99), not eating
other type of vegetables in the past 1 week (OR 2.338, 95%
CI 1.04–5.24) and waist–hip ratio (OR 7.737, 95% CI
4.429–13.51) were found to be independent predictors of
a higher BMI. Mother’s literacy below class X (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.378–0.997) and eating between major meals (OR 0.447, 95% CI 0.293–0.681) were significant predictors of a lower BMI.Conclusion. The prevalence of overweight and obesity among schoolchildren in the Imphal West district of Manipur is low. The possible reasons for this include a more traditional low-fat diet, less exposure to sedentary past-times and a greater time spent playing outdoors.
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Bishwalata Rajkumari, Singh Akoijam Brogen, Singh Akoijam Joy, Devi Longjam Usharani, Singh R K Bikramjit. Overweight and obesity among schoolchildren in Manipur, India. National Medical Journal of India. 2010 Sept-Oct; 23(5): 263-266.