Prevalence and demographic risk factors for overweight and obesity among healthcare workers at Uasin Gishu County hospital, Kenya.

Abstract

Healthcare workers are under continual pressure to be an example to the public on Body Mass Index (BMI). While prior studies have focused on the general population, data on overweight and obesity is limited among healthcare workers. This study aimed at determining the prevalence of and demographic risk factors associated with overweight and obesity among healthcare workers. This cross-sectional study was done on healthcare workers aged 20 years and above comprehensively sampled in Uasin Gishu County hospital. A WHO step-wise questionnaire and anthropometric measurements were used to collect data and logistic regression was performed among variables. The mean age and BMI were 36.96±9.96 years and 27.18±5.04 respectively. 63.4% of respondents had their BMI above 25 kg/m2, 35% were overweight and 28.4% were obese. Females were more likely to become overweight and obese than males with an odds ratio [OR] of 2.8 (95% confidence interval [Cl] = 1.3-6.0, P = 0.008). Age, education and physical activity were found related to BMI and gender was found to be associated with BMI. High prevalence of obesity among healthcare workers is of concern, especially on the issue of central obesity. Intervention among the health workers should be considered.