Abstract
BackgroundIn Mongolia, mean waist circumference (WC) has increased dramatically over the last decade, however, it is unknown whether these increases have been greater than corresponding increases in weight. In this study we aimed to assess whether recent increases in WC were greater than expected from changes in weight in Mongolian adults.MethodsWe used data on 13260 Mongolian adults, aged between 18 and 64 years, who participated in one of three (2005, 2009, 2013) nationally representative cross-sectional surveys. Linear regression was used to estimate changes in mean WC over time, adjusted for age, sex, height and weight. We also estimated the age-standardised prevalence for four obesity classification categories (not obese; obese by WC only; obese by body mass index (BMI) only; obese by both BMI and WC) at each survey year.ResultsThe estimated mean WC in 2009 and 2013, respectively, was 1.26 cm (95% CI: 0.35 to 2.17) and 1.88 cm (95% CI: 1.09 to 2.67) greater compared to 2005, after adjusting for age, sex, height and weight. Between 2005 and 2013, the age-standardised prevalence of those obese according to both BMI and WC increased from 8.0 to 13.6% for men and from 16.5 to 25.5% for women. During the same period, the percentage who were obese by WC only increased from 1.8 to 4.8% for men and from 16.5 to 26.8% for women. In contrast, the percentage who were obese by BMI only remained relatively stable (women: 2.4% in 2005 to 1.0% in 2013; men: 2.7% in 2005 to 4.0% in 2013).ConclusionOver the last decade, among Mongolian adults, there has been substantially greater increase in WC and the prevalence of abdominal obesity than would be expected from increases in weight. Women are at greater risk than men of being misclassified as not obese if obesity is defined using BMI only. Obesity should be monitored using WC in addition to BMI to ensure the prevalence of obesity is not underestimated.
Highlights
In Mongolia, mean waist circumference (WC) has increased dramatically over the last decade, it is unknown whether these increases have been greater than corresponding increases in weight
Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia 2Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, School of Health and Social Development, Faculty of Health, Melbourne, Australia Full list of author information is available at the end of the article (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) of Mongolian adults increased by 1.4 kg/m2 and 5.2 cm, respectively [4]
We estimated the age–standardised prevalence for each category at each survey year, both overall and stratified by sex
Summary
In Mongolia, mean waist circumference (WC) has increased dramatically over the last decade, it is unknown whether these increases have been greater than corresponding increases in weight. The prevalence of obesity in the Mongolian adult population appears to be increasing at a substantial rate [1,2,3]. In a previous study we have shown that, between 2005 and 2013, the age-standardised overall mean body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) of Mongolian adults increased by 1.4 kg/m2 and 5.2 cm, respectively [4]. During that same period the prevalence of general obesity, defined by BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2, increased from 10.8 to 17.6% for men and from 18.9 to 26.4% for women. The prevalence of substantially increased risk based on WC categories in men (9.5% in 2005 to 17.7% in 2013) and women (31.2% in 2005 to 50.6% in 2013) almost doubled between 2005 and 2013 [4].
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