To assess the prevalence of obesity among school children of age group 5-12 years

Abstract

Background: Many countries are going through an economic and nutrition transition which is associated with a change in dietary habits, decreasing physical activity and rising prevalence of obesity. Overweight and obesity are major risk factors for a number of chronic diseases. The present study was conducted to assess the prevalence of obesity among school children of age group 5-12 years.Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted to assess the prevalence of obesity among school children of age group 5-12 years over a period of 6 months. The total children included in the study were 1000. A predesigned and pretested interviewer administered questionnaire was used to collect information. A weighing scale and stadiometer were used to measure the weight and height of each child using standard procedure. BMI was calculated as weight (kg)/height 2 (m 2 ). The date of birth of each child was taken from the school records. Data was collected. Children were categorized into three groups: obese, overweight and normal. Data were analyzed using Statistical package for the Social Sciences (version 21.0). For all statistical tests, P < 0.05 was taken as the significance level.Results: In the present study total children selected for he study were 1000 in which 544 were boys and 456 were girls. The overweight boys were 5.88% and girls were 5.04% and obese boys were 2.20% and girls were 1.09%. Overweight children were maximum in the age 9-10 yrs and minimum in 11-12 yrs. Obese children were maximum in age group 8-9yrs and minimum in 11-12 yrs.Conclusion: This study concluded that overweight and obese boys were more than girls. Overweight children were maximum in the age 9-10 yrs and minimum in 11-12 yrs. Obese children were maximum in age group 8-9yrs and minimum in 11-12 yrs.