Evaluation of obesity in adult women living in Karatas primary health center area in Karatas district of Adana province, Turkey

Introduction and aim:
Obesity which is defined by the World Health Organization as “abnormally high lipid accumulation in the adipose tissue in a level harmful to human health” is a chronic disease with an increasing prevalence in both developed and developing countries. This study aimed to evaluate the obesity in terms of prevalence and demographic characteristics and the risk factors both underlying and caused by the disease in Karatas
Materials and method:
This cross-sectional analytic study comprised 252 non-pregnant women selected by stratified random sampling among 3390 women aged between 20 and 64 living in Karatas district using Household Registration Cards of the primary health center, sampled according to previous prevalence rates in Turkey. The obesity was classified according to body mass index (BMI). In addition to demographic and obesity related data blood pressure and glucose levels were investigated for risk assessments.
Findings:
The prevalence of obesity was found to be 28.6% among the women participated in the study with a mean age of 37.0±11.7. BMI was found to be positively correlated to age (r=0.407, p<0.0001) and pregnancy frequency (r=0.450, p<0.0001) of women. Obesity was observed more frequently among married or widowed women compared to singles (p<0.0001) and among relatives of first-degree (p<0.0001). In terms of risk factors, the obesity was detected more frequently among women with diabetes mellitus (p=0.002) and hypertension (p<0.0001), which were observed in 4.4% and 19.8% of women, respectively.
Results and suggestions:
Obesity in adult women presented higher rates with increasing age and pregnancy frequency, among married or widowed women and among first-degree relatives, in addition to cases with diabetes mellitus or hypertension. This study indicated the public health importance of obesity and the need for preventive health policies to be developed.