Trends in the Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity and Associated Socioeconomic and Household Environmental Factors among Women in Nepal: Findings from the Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys

This study aimed to examine the trends in the prevalence of overweight and obesity and to determine the associated socioeconomic and household environmental factors among women in Nepal. Using nationally representative data from the 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, and 2016 cross-sectional Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHSs) (n = 33,507), the prevalence of overweight–obesity (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) among women aged 15–49 years were examined. From the latest NDHS 2016, non-pregnant women with recorded anthropometric measurements (n = 6165) were included in the final analyses. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine the socioeconomic and household environmental factors associated with BMI ≥ 25 and BMI ≥ 30. Between 1996 and 2016, the prevalence of overweight–obesity increased from 1.8% to 19.7%, while the prevalence of obesity increased from 0.2% to 4.1%. Age, marital status, wealth index, province of residence, type of cooking fuel, and household possessions—refrigerator and bicycle were significantly associated with having overweight–obesity and obesity. Similarly, educational status, religion, type of toilet facility, and household possessions—television and mobile phone were significantly associated with having overweight–obesity. Given the alarming increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity among Nepalese women, there is an urgent need for interventions addressing these critical socioeconomic and household environmental factors.

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Nationally representative surveys show gradual shifting of overweight and obesity towards poor and less-educated women of reproductive age in Nepal

Journal of Biosocial Science ◽

10.1017/s0021932020000152 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-19

Author(s):

Ipsita Sutradhar ◽

Tahmina Akter ◽

Mehedi Hasan ◽

Rajat Das Gupta ◽

Hemraj Joshi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Birth Outcome ◽

Wealth Index ◽

Educational Status ◽

Overweight And Obesity ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Women Of Reproductive Age ◽

Reproductive Age Women ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

The Government

Abstract Overweight and obesity are considered major public health concerns all over the world. They have the potential to increase the risk of developing non-communicable diseases in reproductive age women, increasing their risk of pregnancy related complications and adverse birth outcome. This study was carried out to identify the trend of prevalence of overweight and obesity, along with their determinants, among reproductive age women (15–49 years) in Nepal. Data were taken from the nationally representative 2006, 2011 and 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHSs). Women were considered to be overweight or obese when their BMI was 23.0–27.5 kg/m2 or ≥27.5 kg/m2, respectively. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed, with significance taken at p<0.05. The prevalences of overweight and obesity both showed rising trends in women of reproductive age in Nepal from 2006 to 2016, particularly among those with no education, only primary education and poor women. The presence of overweight and obesity was found to be significantly associated with the sample women’s age, educational status, wealth index, place of residence, ecological zone, developmental region, number of household members, marital status and ethnicity. In 2016 one in every three women of reproductive age in Nepal was either overweight or obese. As overweight and obesity have detrimental effects on women’s health, the Government of Nepal, in collaboration with other government and non-government organizations, should take action to halt the rising trends in overweight and obesity in the country.

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The Forgotten Agenda of Wasting in Southeast Asia: Burden, Determinants and Overlap with Stunting: A Review of Nationally Representative Cross-Sectional Demographic and Health Surveys in Six Countries

Nutrients ◽

10.3390/nu12020559 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (2) ◽

pp. 559 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mueni Mutunga ◽

Severine Frison ◽

Matteo Rava ◽

Paluku Bahwere

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Southeast Asia ◽

Health Problem ◽

Health Surveys ◽

Public Health Problem ◽

Wealth Index ◽

Absolute Number ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Nationally Representative

Childhood wasting is among the most prevalent forms of undernutrition globally. The Southeast Asia region is home to many wasted children, but wasting is not recognized as a public health problem and its epidemiology is yet to be fully examined. This analysis aimed to determine the burden of wasting, its predictors, and the level of wasting and stunting concurrence. Datasets from Demographic and Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys in six countries in the region were analyzed. The pooled weighted prevalence for wasting and concurrent wasting and stunting among children 0–59 months in the six countries was 8.9%, 95% CI (8.0–9.9) and 1.6%, 95% CI (1.5–1.8), respectively. This prevalence is approximately 12-fold higher than the 0.7% prevalence of high-income countries; and translated into an absolute number of 1,088,747 children affected by wasting and 272,563 concurrent wasting and stunting. Wasting prevalence was 50 percent higher in the 0–23-month age group. Predictors for wasting included source of drinking water, wealth index, urban residence, child’s age and history of illness and mother’s body mass index. In conclusion, our analysis showed that wasting is a serious public health problem in the region that should be addressed urgently using both preventive and curative approaches.

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Frequency of television viewing and association with overweight and obesity among women of the reproductive age group in Myanmar: results from a nationwide cross-sectional survey

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2018-024680 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (3) ◽

pp. e024680 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Rajat Das Gupta ◽

Ibrahim Hossain Sajal ◽

Mehedi Hasan ◽

Ipsita Sutradhar ◽

Mohammad Rifat Haider ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Rural Women ◽

Television Viewing ◽

Wealth Index ◽

Educational Status ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Overweight And Obesity ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Secondary Outcome ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional

ObjectivesThis study aimed to discern the association between the frequency of television viewing and overweight and obesity among reproductive age women of Myanmar.DesignThis was a cross-sectional study.SettingThis study used Myanmar Demographic and Health Survey (2015–2016) data.ParticipantsTotal of 12 021 women both aged 15–49 years and also not pregnant or did not deliver a child within the 2 months prior to the survey were included.Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe primary outcome was overweight (23.0 kg/m2to <27.5 kg/m2) and obesity (≥27.5 kg/m2), which was measured using the Asian body mass index cut-off. Ordered logistic regression analysis was conducted to find the association between the explanatory and outcome variables. The potential confounders controlled in the multivariable analyses were age, place of residence, region of residence, highest educational status, current employment status, wealth index, parity and number of household members.ResultsThe prevalence of overweight was 26.5% and obesity was 12.2% among the study participants. The odds of being overweight and obese were 20% higher (adjusted OR (AOR) 1.16, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.32; p=0.023) among those who watched television at least once a week compared with those who did not watch television at all. Rural women who watched television at least once a week were 1.2 times more likely to be obese (AOR 1.16, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.34; p=0.040) compared with those who did not watch television at all.ConclusionsFrequent television watching was associated with obesity among rural women of reproductive age in Myanmar.

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Trends, prevalence and risk factors of overweight and obesity among women of reproductive age in Bangladesh: a pooled analysis of five national cross-sectional surveys

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018468 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (7) ◽

pp. e018468 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Muhammad Abdul Baker Chowdhury ◽

Md Mohiuddin Adnan ◽

Md Zakiul Hassan

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Low Cost ◽

Wealth Index ◽

Overweight And Obesity ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Obesity Prevalence ◽

Women Of Reproductive Age ◽

Cross Sectional

ObjectiveTo determine the trends, prevalence and risk factors of overweight and obesity among Bangladeshi women of reproductive age from 1999 to 2014.DesignWe analysed nationally representative data from the 1999, 2004, 2007, 2011 and 2014 cross-sectional Bangladesh Demographic and Health Surveys.SettingBangladesh.ParticipantsWomen aged 15–49 years.Primary outcomeOverweight/obesity.ResultsA total of 58 192 women were included in the analysis. The prevalence of overweight and obesity among women of reproductive age increased significantly from 7.53% (95% CI 6.83 to 8.29) and 1.82% (95% CI 1.48 to 2.24) in 1999 to 28.37% (95% CI 27.49 to 29.28) and 10.77% (95% CI 10.22 to 11.35) in 2014, respectively. Age, education, wealth index, watching television and contraceptive use were associated with overweight and obesity in both urban and rural areas.ConclusionsOverweight and obesity prevalence increased significantly among Bangladeshi women of reproductive age between 1999 and 2014. Development of effective low-cost strategies to address the increasing burden of obesity should be a high priority.

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Determinants of newborn care utilization in Pakistan: Findings from the Demographic and Health Surveys

F1000Research ◽

10.12688/f1000research.25700.2 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

pp. 1061

Author(s):

Sathirakorn Pongpanich ◽

Abdul Ghaffar ◽

Najma Ghaffar ◽

Hafiz Abdul Majid

Keyword(s):

Maternal Health ◽

Health Services ◽

Postnatal Care ◽

Health Surveys ◽

Newborn Care ◽

Wealth Index ◽

Maternal Health Services ◽

Care Utilization ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Cross Sectional

Background: Information on determinants of postnatal care is essential for maternal health services, and this information is scarce in Pakistan. This study aimed to determine the factors of newborn postnatal care utilization from the Pakistan Demographic and Health Surveys (PDHS) conducted from 2006–2018. Methods: We analyzed data from three rounds of cross-sectional, nationally representative PDHS 2006–07, 2012–13, and 2017–18. Multivariable logistic regression models were applied to explore factors associated with utilization of newborn postnatal care within two months. Results: This study included 5724 women from the 2006–07 PDHS, 7461 from the 2012–13 survey, and 8287 from the 2017–18 survey. The proportion of women receiving newborn postnatal care within the first two months of delivery increased from 13% in 2006–07 to 43% in 2012–13 but dropped to 27% in 2017–18. Respondent’s occupation and prenatal care utilization of maternal health services were common factors that significantly influenced newborn postnatal care utilization within two months. The utilization of postnatal care was greater among women having educated husbands and where the first child was a male in PDHS 2007 round. Higher wealth index and educated respondent had higher postnatal care utilization odds in DHS 2012 and DHS 2018. However, the odds of using postnatal care decreased with the number of household members and total number of children ever born in DHS 2012 and 2018 rounds. Conclusions: There was a general increase in the proportion of women who utilized postnatal care for their newborns during 2006–2013 but a decrease in 2018. The decreased utilization in 2018 warrants further investigation. Improving women’s economic status, education, employment, and antenatal care attendance and reducing parity may increase newborn postnatal care utilization.

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Determinants of newborn care utilization in Pakistan: Findings from the Demographic and Health Surveys

F1000Research ◽

10.12688/f1000research.25700.1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

pp. 1061

Author(s):

Sathirakorn Pongpanich ◽

Abdul Ghaffar ◽

Najma Ghaffar ◽

Hafiz Abdul Majid

Keyword(s):

Postnatal Care ◽

Health Surveys ◽

Economic Status ◽

Newborn Care ◽

Wealth Index ◽

Postpartum Care ◽

Care Utilization ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Public Health Action ◽

Cross Sectional

Background: Information on determinants of postpartum care is essential for public health action, yet this information is scarce in Pakistan. Hence, the current study aimed to determine the factors of newborn postpartum care utilization from the Pakistan Demographic and Health Surveys conducted from 2006–2018. Methods: We analyzed data from three rounds of cross-sectional, nationally representative Pakistan Demographic and Health Surveys (PDHS) 2006–07, 2012–13, and 2017–18. Multivariable logistic regression models were applied to explore factors associated with utilization of newborn postpartum care within two months. Results: This study included 5724 women from the 2006–07 PDHS, 7461 from the 2012–13 survey, and 8287 from the 2017–18 survey. The proportion of women receiving newborn postnatal care within the first two months of delivery increased from 13% in 2006–07 to 43% in 2012–13 but dropped to 27% in 2017–18. Respondent’s occupation and prenatal care utilization of maternal health services were common factors that significantly influenced newborn postnatal care utilization within two months. The utilization of postnatal care was greater among women having educated husbands and where the first child was a male in PDHS 2007 round. Higher wealth index and educated respondent had higher postnatal care utilization odds in DHS 2012 and DHS 2018. However, the odds of using postnatal care decreased with the number of household members and total number of children ever born in DHS 2012 and 2018 rounds. Conclusions: There was a general increase in the proportion of women who utilized postnatal care for their newborns during 2006–2013 but a decrease in 2018. The decreased utilization in 2018 warrants further investigation. Improving women’s economic status, education, employment, and antenatal care attendance and reducing parity may increase newborn postnatal care utilization.

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Self-reported vision and hallucinations in older adults: results from two longitudinal US health surveys

Age and Ageing ◽

10.1093/ageing/afaa043 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 49 (5) ◽

pp. 843-849

Author(s):

Ali G Hamedani ◽

Dylan P Thibault ◽

Judy A Shea ◽

Allison W Willis

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Cataract Surgery ◽

Visual Impairment ◽

Health Surveys ◽

Vision Loss ◽

Adult Population ◽

Population Level ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Logistic Regression Models ◽

Nationally Representative

Abstract Background Vision loss may be a risk factor for hallucinations, but this has not been studied at the population level. Methods To determine the association between self-reported vision loss and hallucinations in a large community-based sample of older adults, we performed a cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis of two large, nationally representative US health surveys: the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Visual impairment and hallucinations were self- or proxy-reported. Multivariate single and mixed effects logistic regression models were built to examine whether visual impairment and history of cataract surgery were associated with hallucinations. Results In NHATS (n = 1520), hallucinations were more prevalent in those who reported difficulty reading newspaper print (OR 1.77, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.32–2.39) or recognising someone across the street (OR 2.48, 95% CI: 1.86–3.31) after adjusting for confounders. In HRS (n = 3682), a similar association was observed for overall (OR 1.32, 95% CI: 1.08–1.60), distance (OR 1.61, 95% CI: 1.32–1.96) and near eyesight difficulties (OR 1.52, 95% CI: 1.25–1.85). In neither sample was there a significant association between cataract surgery and hallucinations after adjusting for covariates. Conclusions Visual dysfunction is associated with increased odds of hallucinations in the older US adult population. This suggests that the prevention and treatment of vision loss may potentially reduce the prevalence of hallucinations in older adults.

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Prevalence and time trends in overweight and obesity among urban women: an analysis of demographic and health surveys data from 24 African countries, 1991–2014

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2017-017344 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 7 (10) ◽

pp. e017344 ◽

Cited By ~ 49

Author(s):

Dickson Abanimi Amugsi ◽

Zacharie T Dimbuene ◽

Blessing Mberu ◽

Stella Muthuri ◽

Alex C Ezeh

Keyword(s):

Health Surveys ◽

Eating Behaviour ◽

Urban Women ◽

Overweight And Obesity ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

African Countries ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Urban Africa ◽

Active Lifestyles

ObjectiveTo examine the prevalence and trends in overweight and obesity among non-pregnant urban women in Africa over the past two and a half decades.DesignCross-sectional surveys conducted between 1991 and 2014.SettingsDemographic and Health Surveys (DHS), repeated cross-sectional data collected in 24 African countries.ParticipantsAdult non-pregnant women aged 15–49 years. The earlier DHS collected anthropometric data on only those women who had children aged 0–5 years. The main analyses were limited to this subgroup. The participants were classified as overweight (25.0–29.9 kg/m2) and obese (≥30.0 kg/m2).ResultsThe prevalence of overweight and obesity among women increased in all the 24 countries. Trends were statistically significant in 17 of the 24 countries in the case of obesity and 13 of the 24 for overweight. In Ghana, overweight almost doubled (p=0.001) while obesity tripled (p=0.001) between 1993 and 2014. Egypt has the highest levels of overweight and obesity at 44% (95% CI 42%, 46.5%) and 39% (95% CI 36.6%, 41.8%), respectively, in 2014 and the trend showed significant increase (p=0.005) from 1995 levels. Also, obesity doubled in Kenya, Benin, Niger, Rwanda, Ivory Coast and Uganda, while tripled in Zambia, Burkina Faso, Mali, Malawi and Tanzania. Ethiopia and Madagascar had the lowest prevalence of both obesity and overweight, with overweight ranging from 7% to 12% and obesity from 1% to 4%.ConclusionsOverweight and obesity are increasing among women of reproductive age in urban Africa, with obesity among this age group having more than doubled or tripled in 12 of the 24 countries. There is an urgent need for deliberate policies and interventions to encourage active lifestyles and healthy eating behaviour to curb this trend in urban Africa.

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Knowledge and use of lactational amenorrhea as a family planning method among adolescent mothers in Uganda: a secondary analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys between 2006 and 2016

10.1101/2021.06.17.21259067 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Catherine Birabwa ◽

Pamela Bakkabulindi ◽

Solomon T Wafula ◽

Peter Waiswa ◽

Lenka Benova

Keyword(s):

Adolescent Mothers ◽

Young Women ◽

Health Surveys ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Modern Contraceptive ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Survey Question ◽

Lactational Amenorrhea ◽

Wide Range ◽

Nationally Representative

Objective: To assess the level of knowledge and use of lactational amenorrhea method (LAM) among adolescents in Uganda between 2006 and 2016 using nationally representative data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS). Design: Cross-sectional design involving analysis of three DHS (2006, 2011, and 2016) in Uganda. Setting: The data was collected in Uganda. The DHS are nationally representative surveys on a wide range of indicators including contraception knowledge and use. Participants: A total of 8,250 adolescents (15-19 years) and 7,110 young women (20-24 years) were included. Primary outcome measure: Use of LAM among adolescents and young women with a livebirth within six months before each survey. Results: In 2016, less than 1% of eligible adolescents correctly used LAM and 56% were passively benefitting from LAM. The median duration of postpartum amenorrhea (PPA) among adolescents in 2016 was 6.9 months, declining from 8.3 months in 2006. Compared to adolescents, eligible young women had higher knowledge of LAM and higher medianPPA duration in 2016. The percentage of eligible adolescents who met the LAM criteria irrespective of whether they reported LAM use (protected by LAM) decreased from 76% in 2006 to 57% in 2016. More than 50% of eligible adolescents were aware of LAM in 2016, increasing from 6% in 2006, potentially in part due to change in survey question. Conclusion: Despite increasing awareness of LAM, reported and correct use of LAM was low among adolescents who could benefit from this method in Uganda, and declining over time. Support for adolescents to harness the benefits of correct LAM use should be increased. Additional research is needed to better understand the dynamics of LAM use in adolescents, including the transition to use of other modern contraceptive methods.

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Trends in obesity by socioeconomic status among non-pregnant women aged 15–49 y: a cross-sectional, multi-dimensional equity analysis of demographic and health surveys in 11 sub-Saharan Africa countries, 1994–2015

International Health ◽

10.1093/inthealth/ihaa093 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Oghenebrume Wariri ◽

Jacob Albin Korem Alhassan ◽

Godwin Mark ◽

Oyinkansola Adesiyan ◽

Lori Hanson

Keyword(s):

Health Surveys ◽

Reproductive Age ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Demographic And Health Surveys ◽

Women Of Reproductive Age ◽

Or Education ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Nationally Representative ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Ssa Countries

Abstract Background Global obesity estimates show a steadily increasing pattern across socioeconomic and geographical divides, especially among women. Our analysis tracked and described obesity trends across multiple equity dimensions among women of reproductive age (15–49 y) in 11 sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries during 1994–2015. Methods This study consisted of a cross-sectional series analysis using nationally representative demographic and health surveys (DHS) data. The countries included were Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Nigeria, Senegal, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The data reported are from a reanalysis conducted using the WHO Health Equity Assessment Toolkit that assesses inter- and intra-country health inequalities across socioeconomic and geographical dimensions. We generated equiplots to display intra- and inter-country equity gaps. Results There was an increasing trend in obesity among women of reproductive age across all 11 SSA countries. Obesity increased unequally across wealth categories, place of residence and educational measures of inequality. The wealthiest, most educated and urban dwellers in most countries had a higher prevalence of obesity. However, in Comoros, obesity did not increase consistently with increasing wealth or education compared with other countries. The most educated and wealthiest women in Comoros had lower obesity rates compared with their less wealthy and less well-educated counterparts. Conclusion A window of opportunity is presented to governments to act structurally and at policy level to reduce obesity generally and prevent a greater burden on disadvantaged subpopulation groups in sub-Saharan Africa.

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