Overweight and obese Chinese adults between the ages of 18 and 97: analysis of anthropometric data derived from 63,449 adults from 2002 to 2019

Abstract

A major public health concern is the number of individuals that are overweight or obese. A variety of physical indices of 63,449 adults from 115 ethnic groups were investigated from 2002 to 2019. The conditions associated with being overweight or obese were evaluated in the Chinese population using BMI and PBF. Our data revealed that weight, stature, waist circumference, upper arm circumference, body density, LM, and LMI were all greater in males than those in females. In females, thigh circumference, BMI, BAI, body fat rate, FM, and FMI were all greater when compared with those of males. According to the BMI index classification, 29.6% of males were overweight and 11.8% of males were obese, while 30.0% of females were overweight and 14.0% of females were obese. Based on the classification of the body fat percentage, the obesity rate was 54.0% in the total sample of males and 27.2% in the total sample of females. According to the mean of waist circumference, males aged 40 to 59 and females aged 30 to 59 or 70 to 90 were in the early stages of central obesity, whereas females in the 60- to 69-year-old age group had central obesity. Cluster analysis and principal component analysis suggested that Austroasiatic language ethnic groups, Hmong-Mien language ethnic groups, Tibeto-Burman language ethnic groups, and Kam-tai language groups cluster together. These groups all have relatively small values for weight and hip and waist circumferences. However, individuals from North Asian ethnic groups and Han had greater values for weight and hip and waist circumferences. According to BMI, people from the Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups, Kam-tai ethnic groups, Hmong-Mien ethnic groups, Austroasiatic ethnic groups, and the Han ethnic group were categorized as normal, whereas those from North Asian ethnic groups were considered overweight. In addition, the mean of waist circumference demonstrated that both Han males and females exhibited early stages of central obesity, while those from North Asia had central obesity. Therefore, we determined that BMI is a more reliable and suitable measure for the assessment of overweight and obese individuals in the Chinese population.