Abstract
IntroductionAlthough the prevalence of underweight is declining among Indian women, the prevalence of overweight/obesity is increasing. This study examined the prevalence and factors associated with underweight and overweight/obesity among reproductive-aged (i.e., 15–49 years) women in India.MethodsThis cross-sectional study analyzed data from the 2015–16 National Family Health Survey. The Asian and World Health Organization (WHO) recommended cutoffs for body mass index (BMI) were used to categorize body weight. The Asian and WHO BMI cutoffs for combined overweight/obesity were ≥ 23 and ≥ 25 kg/m2, respectively. Both recommendations had the same cutoff for underweight, < 18.5 kg/m2. After prevalence estimation, logistic regression was applied to investigate associated factors.ResultsAmong 647,168 women, the median age and BMI was 30 years and 21.0 kg/m2, respectively. Based on the Asian cutoffs, the overall prevalence of underweight was 22.9%, overweight was 22.6%, and obesity was 10.7%, compared to 15.5% overweight and 5.1% obesity as per WHO cutoffs. The prevalence and odds of underweight were higher among young, nulliparous, contraceptive non-user, never-married, Hindu, backward castes, less educated, less wealthy, and rural women. According to both cutoffs, women who were older, ever-pregnant, ever-married, Muslims, castes other than backwards, highly educated, wealthy, and living in urban regions had higher prevalence and odds of overweight/obesity.ConclusionThe prevalence of both non-normal weight categories (i.e., underweight and overweight/obesity) was high. A large proportion of women are possibly at higher risks of cardiovascular and reproductive adverse events due to these double nutrition burdens. Implementing large-scale interventions based on these results is essential to address these issues.
Highlights
The prevalence of underweight is declining among Indian women, the prevalence of overweight/obesity is increasing
This country is dealing with the double nutrition burden of underweight and overweight/ obesity, and among women of reproductive age, the prevalence of underweight has declined from 36% in 2005–06 to 23% in 2015–16, the prevalence of overweight/obesity has increased from 13% in 2005–06 to 21% in 2015–16 [19, 20]
More than three-fourths of the underweight women were from rural areas (76.7%), while around half of the overweight/obese women were from rural areas (52.1 and 47.8% according to Asian and World Health Organization (WHO) cutoffs, respectively)
Summary
The prevalence of underweight is declining among Indian women, the prevalence of overweight/obesity is increasing. This study examined the prevalence and factors associated with underweight and overweight/obesity among reproductive-aged (i.e., 15–49 years) women in India. With a population over 1 billion people, India is no exception to the trend of rising prevalence of overweight/obesity [18, 19] This country is dealing with the double nutrition burden of underweight and overweight/ obesity, and among women of reproductive age, the prevalence of underweight has declined from 36% in 2005–06 to 23% in 2015–16, the prevalence of overweight/obesity has increased from 13% in 2005–06 to 21% in 2015–16 [19, 20].
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