Abstract
BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to investigate the association between mean body mass index (BMI) and prevalence of obesity in adult populations living in Brazilian State capitals.MethodsAn ecological study was conducted, using data from the National Household Budget Survey conducted in July 2002 through June 2003, including a representative sample of 48.470 households. Pearson’s correlation and linear regression coefficients were estimated in order to define the relationships of mean BMI and sex-specific, age standardized obesity prevalence (BMI ≥ 30.0 kg/m2) in adults aged 20 to 59 years.ResultsStronger correlations between BMI and prevalence of obesity were observed in women (r = 0.9; p < 0.001) than in men (r = 0.6; p = 0.001) in all analyzes. A reduction of one unit in mean BMI predicted a decline in the prevalence of obesity of about 4.0% (95% CI: 1.7 - 6.3) in men, and 3.4% (95% CI: 2.6 – 4.3) in women.ConclusionWe found a correlation between BMI and prevalence of obesity, particularly among women, suggesting that population-based strategies would be effective to reduce the prevalence of obesity in adult populations living in Brazilian state capitals.
Highlights
The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between mean body mass index (BMI) and prevalence of obesity in adult populations living in Brazilian State capitals
Among the published studies on the population-based approach proposed by Rose [8-11], scarce data are available regarding the relationship of BMI distribution to obesity prevalence in developing countries
Using a population-based approach, the aim of the present study was to investigate the association between mean BMIs and point prevalence rates of obesity in the adult populations living in Brazilian State capitals
Summary
The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between mean body mass index (BMI) and prevalence of obesity in adult populations living in Brazilian State capitals. Obesity has become a public health problem worldwide and, it is imperative that strategies for its prevention and control be implemented. As environment influences nutritional status, intervention at the individual level alone may not be effective in preventing or reducing obesity [2,3,4]. Among the published studies on the population-based approach proposed by Rose [8-11], scarce data are available regarding the relationship of BMI distribution to obesity prevalence in developing countries. Cultural, political and physical environments influencing nutritional status is a potential way to reduce the prevalence of obesity [12]
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