Prevalence of Generalized and Abdominal Overweight-Obesity among Adolescents from Punjab State: Their Possible Risk Drivers.

Background: Childhood overweight/obesity is currently most pressing public health concerns in the 21^st century. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of generalized and abdominal overweight/obesity and their correlations in adolescents from State of Punjab, India. The study further assessed various lifestyle habits as possible risk drivers of overweight/obesity such as dietary habits, physical activity, sleep time, screen time, etc.

Methodology: This cross-sectional study was performed on 1408 adolescents aged 10-16 years from seven schools in Punjab, India. Prevalence of overweight/obesity was measured using four criteria Body Mass Index, Waist Circumference, Waist Hip ratio, and Waist/Height ratio were taken as indicators of generalized and abdominal obesity. The cut-off of >23^rd and >27^th adult equivalent BMI for overweight and obesity was used. 545 adolescents (healthy weight and overweight/obese) were then randomly selected for their lifestyle assessment.

Results: The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity based on BMI was 18.6% and 12.4% respectively. Abdominal obesity was 11% by WC, 32.4% by WHR, and 24.6% by WHtR. All three waist indices showed significant correlation with BMI (P < 0.001). The prevalence of overweight/obesity among boys was significantly higher than girls when measured by BMI Vs WC, WHR, and WHtR. Significant association was also observed between measures of obesity and age, with higher prevalence in adolescents of 10-13 than 14-16 years. Overweight/obesity was not significantly associated with their possible lifestyle risk drivers.

Conclusion: Overweight/obesity in adolescents showed significant association with gender and age, and the prevalence of overweight/obesity was found to be significantly higher as compared to the previous reports from India.