Abstract

Background: Obesity is an emergent problem in India, which is adding to disease burden. To prevent adult obesity, knowledge of prevalence and determinants of childhood obesity is essential. There is no study related to childhood obesity in the newly formed state of Andhra Pradesh; this would be the first one to document the prevalence and determinants in this region.

Objective: To assess the prevalence and determinants of overweight and obesity in the affluent adolescents of Vijayawada city.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study with a sample size of 1721 students aged 12–15 years from randomly selected from seven affluent private schools with fee >20, 000 rupees per annum of Vijayawada from March 2013 to January 2014. The height and weight of the participants were measured and body mass index was calculated. A predesigned and pretested questionnaire was administered to assess the physical activity and dietary habits. Data were managed on an Excel spreadsheet and odds ratio was used to calculate strength of association. Variables showing P < 0.05 were considered as statistically significant risk and were subjected to multiple regression analysis.

Results: The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity was 26.9% and 8.7%. Among the study participants, 50.6% were boys of which 15.7% were overweight and 5.4% were obese, and 49.38% were girls of which 11.2% were overweight and 3.4% were obese. The major risk factors include eating outside home, eating while watching TV, increased frequency of snacking outside, lack of outdoor sports, going to school on vehicles, prolonged school timings, long periods of watching TV/using computer, no daily exercise, both parents working, less hours of physical training at school, and absence of playground in the school.

Conclusion: The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity was found to be 26.9% and 8.7%. The major risk factors were eating outside home, eating while watching TV, frequency of snacking outside, not playing outdoor games, both parents working, vehicular mode of transport to school, increased hours spent in school per day, not exercising daily, long periods of watching TV/using computer, less hours of physical training in school per week, and absence of playground in the school. Frequency of carbonated drinks, daytime sleep, and frequency of snacking at home were found not to influence the prevalence of overweight and obesity.

Key words: Affluent, India, adolescent, childhood, risk factors