Abstract

PREVALENCE OF EXCESS BODY WEIGHT AND ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS AMONG ADULTS IN YAOUNDE, CAMEROON.

Marianne Patricia Ntsama*, Christine Sarah Minka and Anne Christine Ndzana

ABSTRACT

Background: Excess body weight is a very serious global epidemic. It constitutes a major public health issue in the world on developed, emerging and under-developed countries. Obesity and overweight trends are especially alarming in adults. If correctives measures are not put in, this epidemic will considerably increase morbidity at a global level. Objective: In Cameroon, very few data on the excess body weight are available hence this study aim to evaluate the importance of obesity, overweight and the factors that are associated with it among adult population in the city of Yaounde. Methods: The cross-sectional, descriptive and analytic study was conducted on 244 adults recruited from January to June 2011 in the capital city of Yaounde. Anthropometric and arterial blood pressure measurements were taken and well-structured questionnaire was used to collect socio demographic characteristics, food habits and practice of physical activity. The data collected was entered and analysed using Epi info software. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors associated with excess body weight in Yaounde’s population. Results: Out of the 244 subjects included in the analysis, 112 (45.9%) subjects were male and 132 (54.1%) subjects were female with sex ratio male/ female of 0.85. The mean age was 43 years, the prevalence of the obesity was 32.4% (IC95%: 26.5% - 38.6%). The prevalence of overweight was 43% with an overall prevalence of excess body weight 75.4% (IC 95%: 69.5% - 80.7%). Conclusion: The prevalence of excess body weight was high in the studied population of Yaounde. Excess body weight was closely associated to gender, age, physical activity and hypertension after other variables are control.

Keywords: Obesity, overweight, excess body weight, adults, Yaounde.