Study of risk factors of obesity and overweight among high school children

Abstract

Background: Overweight and obesity now rank as the fifth leading risk for mortality worldwide. Although the health consequences of obesity are mostly manifested during adulthood, the factors underlying the disease condition commonly originate during childhood. Overweight and obese children are more likely to grow to become overweight and obese adults with higher chances of developing non-communicable diseases like diabetes and CVDs.Aim of the study: To study risk factors of obesity and overweight among high school children. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional descriptive study was done for duration of 06 months i.e., from August 2019 to January 2020 in the urban field practice area of Dr.V.R.K. Women’s Medical College, Rangareddy, Telangana, India.Results: In the present study 48% were males (120/250) and females occupied 52% (130/250). Male : female ratio was 2:1. Mean Age ± S.D. of males was 8.82 ± 0.51 and Mean Age ± S.D. of females was 8.97 ± 0.54. 84% were over-weight and 16% were obese.Conclusion: The prevalence of obesity in comparison to overweight, varied significantly among gender (male=4.8% female=11.2%), education and occupation of mother, type of family and frequency of junk food consumption, number of siblings, dietary habits, cold drink consumption and number of hours of watching TV were significantly associated with obesity(P=<0.05).