Abstract
Objective: The aim of this study was to assess obesity and overweight by WHO criteria in Mashhad, Iran.
 Method: This cross-sectional study was performed on 4453 people from Mashhad in 2009. Comprehensive data of age, height, weight, education, and marriage was collected. Overweight and obesity were calculated according to the body mass index (BMI).
 Results: A total of 1828 participants entered study, of whom 70.4% were women. The mean age of the population was 39.8±13.5 years. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 36.5% (95% CI 34.3-38.6) and 16.9% (95% CI 15.1-18.8), respectively. The prevalence of overweight was 39.0% in men and 35.4% in women which increased significantly by age (P<0.001 & OR=1.055). The prevalence of obesity in men and women was 12.3% and 18.9% respectively which showed women had a significantly higher risk (P<0.001). The risk of overweight and obesity was higher in married but lower in educated people.
 Conclusion: This study showed a rapid increase in obesity and overweight, especially in women, in Mashhad population as a sample of the Iranian society. Attention to preventive and education plans should be the priority of health policies.
Highlights
The increasing trend of non-communicable diseases is one of the greatest public health challenges, especially in developed countries 1
This study suggested that periodic studies in Iran could provide health managers with information on the epidemic of obesity in different parts of the country; in addition, information on the status of obesity in Iran can help to have an estimate on the incidence of cardiovascular diseases and even cancers that result from obesity 10
We reported the prevalence of obesity and overweight by sex, marital status, and educational level in a population of Mashhad, as a representative of the Iranian population, according to the WHO criteria
Summary
The increasing trend of non-communicable diseases is one of the greatest public health challenges, especially in developed countries 1. Obesity is one of the most important risk factors of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancer, and is the 5thcause of mortality and morbidity worldwide 2. According to the WHO reports, more than 1.5 billion people aged 20 years and older are obese in the world 3. More than 65% of the world population lives in countries where most people die of obesity and overweight. According to the findings of this study, obesity can be the cause of a high percentage of non-communicable diseases in Iran in recent years 10. Due to the importance of obesity and since it is a major public health concern worldwide, we decided to evaluate the prevalence of obesity and overweight in a population based study according to the WHO criteria
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