Assessment of obesity and associated risk factors in women aged 20-64 living in Solakli and Karatas Health Centers in city of Adana

Background and Purpose:Obesity is excess of the fat tissue that will adversely affect the health of the individual according to the height, weight, gender and race. Obesity is a chronic disease increasing in prevalence in developed and developing nations and brings a financial burden to the economy. The purpose of this study is to investigate the degree of obesity and the risk factors resulting in obesity in adult age women in the region of Solakli and Karatas central health clinics and to give recommendations to those patients that we consider obese and to improve health of people and the society.Materials and Methods:This study is cross-sectional analytical study evaluating obesity in nonpregnant women aged 20-64 in Karatas and Solakli region. The population of women aged 20-64 years in our study included 1282 women in Solakli, and 3390 in Karatas. The prevalence studies conducted in Turkey associated with obesity was taken into consideration to calculate that sample should include 477 women with 95% confidence interval and 5% error margin. A sample was selected randomly by stratified sampling from their family health cards. To assess obesity, Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated. Blood pressures and blood glucose and lipid levels were measured to determine the risk factors like hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidemia associated with obesity. SPSS 10.0 and Epi-Info program was used for data analysis. Chi-square, t-test, correlation and logistic regression tests were performed.Results:Mean age in Solakli was 36,5±11,6 years, in Karatas 37,0±11,6 years. There was no significant difference between two groups? mean age (t=0,504, df=475, p>0.05). 28,0% of women in Solakli was considered obese while this rate was 28,6% in Karatas. The overall rate was found to be 28,3%. When we compared mean BMI of women living in Solakli and Karatas there was no significant difference found (t=0,288, df=475, p>0.05). There was a moderately significant positive association between ages and the BMI?s of the women participated in this study (r=0,369, p=0,000). A moderately significant positive association was observed between length of marriage and BMI (r=0,486, p=0,000). A moderately significant positive association was found in number of pregnancies and BMI (r=0,360, p=0,000). When we assessed dietary habits and obesity; consumption of yogurt, cheese, red meat, eggs, pasta, animal or vegetable fat, honey-grape molasses-jam, pastry-cakes and BMI was positively associated with a slightly significant correlation. Consumption of kebap and BMI was positively associated with a moderately significant correlation. Bread consumption and BMI was positively associated with a strong correlation. While 4,6% (22) of the women participated in this study had Diabetes Mellitus (DM), 0,8% (4) had glucose intolerance. We determined that obesity was seen more in subjects with DM (?2=18, 635, df=1, p=0,000). 19,7% (94) of the women participated in this study was found to have hypertension (HT). When we evaluated the association between obesity and HT; obesity was seen more in subjects with HT which was highly statistically significant (?2=52,649, df=1, p=0,000). When we evaluated the association between blood lipids and obesity; while total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides had significant association in the same direction, HDL cholesterol had significant association in the opposite direction.Conclusion:In our study we found that there is a significant association between obesity and increasing age, number of pregnancies and length of marriage; in diet, as consumption of yogurt, cheese, red meat, eggs, pasta, animal and vegetable fat, honey-grape molasses-jam, pastry-cakes, kebap and bread increases obesity will increase. It was also found that obesity is seen more with subjects who have DM and HT and higher blood lipid levels are significantly associated with obesity. As also seen in this study, obesity is a major public health problem that requires generating preventive health policies to prevent it.Key Words: Body Mass Index (BMI), Woman, Obesity