TY - JOUR
T1 - Dietary, lifestyle and socio-economic correlates of overweight, obesity and central adiposity in lebanese children and adolescents
AU - Nasreddine, Lara
AU - Naja, Farah
AU - Akl, Christelle
AU - Chamieh, Marie Claire
AU - Karam, Sabine
AU - Sibai, Abla Mehio
AU - Hwalla, Nahla
PY - 2014/3/10
Y1 - 2014/3/10
N2 - The Eastern Mediterranean region is characterized by one of the highest burdens of paediatric obesity worldwide. This study aims at examining dietary, lifestyle, and socio-economic correlates of overweight, obesity, and abdominal adiposity amongst children and adolescents in Lebanon, a country of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. A nationally representative cross-sectional survey was conducted on 6-19-year-old subjects (n = 868). Socio-demographic, lifestyle, dietary, and anthropometric data (weight, height, waist circumference) were collected. Overweight and obesity were defined based on BMI z-scores. Elevated waist circumference (WC) and elevated waist to height ratio (WHtR) were used as indices of abdominal obesity. Of the study sample, 34.8% were overweight, 13.2% were obese, 14.0% had elevated WC, and 21.3% had elevated WHtR. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that male gender, maternal employment, residence in the capital Beirut, sedentarity, and higher consumption of fast food and sugar sweetened beverages were associated with increased risk of obesity, overweight, and abdominal adiposity, while regular breakfast consumption, higher intakes of milk/dairies and added fats/oils were amongst the factors associated with decreased risk. The study's findings call for culture-specific intervention strategies for the promotion of physical activity, healthy lifestyle, and dietary practices amongst Lebanese children and adolescents.
AB - The Eastern Mediterranean region is characterized by one of the highest burdens of paediatric obesity worldwide. This study aims at examining dietary, lifestyle, and socio-economic correlates of overweight, obesity, and abdominal adiposity amongst children and adolescents in Lebanon, a country of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. A nationally representative cross-sectional survey was conducted on 6-19-year-old subjects (n = 868). Socio-demographic, lifestyle, dietary, and anthropometric data (weight, height, waist circumference) were collected. Overweight and obesity were defined based on BMI z-scores. Elevated waist circumference (WC) and elevated waist to height ratio (WHtR) were used as indices of abdominal obesity. Of the study sample, 34.8% were overweight, 13.2% were obese, 14.0% had elevated WC, and 21.3% had elevated WHtR. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that male gender, maternal employment, residence in the capital Beirut, sedentarity, and higher consumption of fast food and sugar sweetened beverages were associated with increased risk of obesity, overweight, and abdominal adiposity, while regular breakfast consumption, higher intakes of milk/dairies and added fats/oils were amongst the factors associated with decreased risk. The study's findings call for culture-specific intervention strategies for the promotion of physical activity, healthy lifestyle, and dietary practices amongst Lebanese children and adolescents.
KW - Abdominal adiposity
KW - Correlates
KW - Diet
KW - Eastern Mediterranean region
KW - Lebanon
KW - Obesity
KW - Paediatric
KW - Prevalence
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84896099765&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84896099765&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/nu6031038
DO - 10.3390/nu6031038
M3 - Article
C2 - 24618510
AN - SCOPUS:84896099765
SN - 2072-6643
VL - 6
SP - 1038
EP - 1062
JO - Nutrients
JF - Nutrients
IS - 3
ER -