Prevalence of and risk factors for diabesity in urban Chennai

Abstract

Background: A large number of epidemiologic studies across the world indicate a growing link between obesity and diabetes. The metropolitan city of Chennai in South India is experiencing an alarming increase in diabetes and obesity. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of and risk factors for diabetes and obesity together termed as “diabesity” among adults in urban Chennai. Materials and Methods: This was a community-based cross-sectional door-to-door study done as part of a large National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR)––a funded project aimed to understand patterns and determinants of health in South Asia. Of the 200 wards in Chennai, 34 wards were surveyed in the main project and two wards were selected randomly for this substudy. Five community enumeration blocks were selected using a systematic sampling technique. Participants aged ≥18 years were selected using a consecutive sampling method. Results: Of the 1138 participants studied, the prevalence of diabesity was found to be 34.3%(n = 390). Of the study participants, 74.8% had obesity (61.9%––generalized obesity; 68.5%––abdominal obesity) and 43.0% had diabetes. As age increased, the diabesity risk also increased gradually from 30 to 39 years (odds ratio [OR]: 3.6[95%, confidence interval [CI]: 1.4–8.9]) to 50–59 years (OR: 5.4[95%, CI: 2.2–13.2]), whereas there was a slight decrease in risk after 60 years (OR: 5.1[95%, CI: 2.1–12.3]). Females had nearly twice the risk of diabesity compared to men (OR: 1.8, P < 0.001), and physically inactive individuals had 1.7 times increased risk (P < 0.001). Conclusion: We report in this study that the prevalence of the dual metabolic defect (diabesity) is alarmingly high in urban Chennai. This study was an attempt to understand the epidemiology of diabesity.