Journal of Nutritional Disorders & Therapy

Abstract

Magnitude of Overweight/Obesity and Associated Factors among High School Adolescents’ in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Dessalegn Dereje, Robel Yirgu and Tesfaye Yitna Chichiabellu

Background: Worldwide, at least 2.8 million peoples die each year due to overweight and obesity and an estimated 35.8 million (2.3%) of global Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) are caused by overweight and obesity. Therefore this study aimed to measure to the magnitude of overweight/obesity and associated factors among high school adolescents’ in Addis Ababa.
Methods: Cross-sectional study design was conducted from February, 2016 to March, 2016 among high school adolescents’ in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Data were entered in to Epi Info version 7 and exported to SPSS version 20 software for analysis. Multiple logistic analyses were done to control possible confounding variable. P-value less than 0.05 were taken as significant association.
Result: The prevalence of adolescents’ overweight and obesity was 18.2%.Family income [AOR= 4.1(95% CI; 1.1, 15.8)], physical activity [AOR= 2.7(95% CI; 1.0, 6.9)], sleep duration [AOR=3.7(95% CI; 1.9- 7.0, p=0.000)] had significant association with overweight and obesity.
Conclusion: Higher prevalence rates of overweight and obesity were seen. Family income, physical activity and sleep duration were important determinants impacting the risk of overweight/obesity in adolescents. Strategies which focus on collaboration among health sectors and education sectors, increasing awareness on adolescent adequate duration of sleep at night through mass media and training for parents at school level should be given to encourage their children to involve themselves in more physical exercises, sports and outdoor activities. Schools should also facilitate the environment for sport grounds.