Abstract

Background: The prevalence of obesity is increasing with the changing lifestyle of families over the past few years. Objectives: To study the prevalence and review specific parameters contributing to obesity in schoolgoing adolescents.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among purposively selected schools of different socioeconomic strata in Surat city after taking their due permission. A predesigned, semi-structured questionnaire was administered to the students in the 14–16 years age group and filled under supervision. Data were collected from 1079 school adolescents within 8 months, from January 2013 to August 2013. Physical parameters such as height, weight, and waist and hip circumference were measured. Analysis was carried out using Epi Info 6 and appropriate statistical tests 2 (proportions, w -test) were applied.
Results:Overallprevalenceofoverweightandobesitywas10.2%and6%,respectively.Theprevalenceofoverweightand obesitywas12.4%and8.2%inboyswhereasitwas7.2%and2.7%ingirls.Themajorityofoverweight(17.7%)andobese students (11.2%) were from upper income group (UIG) schools compared to lower income group (LIG) schools in which 7.4% students were found to be overweight and 4.2% were found to be obese, and middle income group (MIG) school in which 6.3% students were overweight and 3% were obese. This difference in body mass index (BMI) among three groups was statistically significant (po 0.00). More cases of overweight and obesity were found in students whose parents had higher level of education (po 0.00). Association was found between parents’ occupation and BMI (po 0.05). Obesity (7.2%) and overweight (12.5%) were seen more in children using vehicular transport for going to school. Conclusion: Prevalence of overweight and obesity was more in students in UIG as compared to MIG and LIG schools. A significant association was found between parents’ education, occupation, mode of transportation to school, and BMI. Awareness generation regarding lifestyle-related diseases prevalent among the adolescents and parents is need of the hour.