Overweight and Obesity among Women at Reproductive Age in Cambodia: Data Analysis of Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey 2014

Abstract

Introduction Overweight and obesity are known the risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs). They are the leading risks of global deaths with at least 2.8 million adults dying annually. In Cambodia the prevalence of overweight and obesity among women aged 15-49 years increased from 6% in 2000 to 18% in 2014 becoming a public health burden. We aimed to examine the socio-demographic and behavioral factors associated with overweight and obesity among women of reproductive age. Methods We analyzed existing data from Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey (CDHS) 2014 which used a two-stage stratified cluster sampling approach to select samples. Data analysis was restricted to only non-pregnancy with total eligible women of 10818. Multivariable logistic regressions were performed using STATA V16 to assess the determinants of overweight and obesity, taking into account the sampling weight in the analysis. Results Overweight and obesity were 15.2% and 2.8% respectively. Factors independently associated with increased odds of overweight and obesity including women aged 20-29 years with adjusted odds ratio [AOR=2.4; 95% CI: 1.6-3.6], 30-39 years [AOR=4.6; 95% CI: 3.0-6.9] and 40-49 years [AOR=6.6; 95% CI: 4.3-10.1], married women [AOR=1.8; 95% CI: 1.3-2.7], urban residence [AOR=1.3; 95% CI: 1.1-1.5] and women having at least 4 children [AOR=1.7; 95% CI: 1.2-2.5]. However following factors were found to be associated with decreased odds of overweight and obesity: completed at least secondary education [AOR=0.7; 95% CI: 0.6-0.8] agricultural work [AOR=0.7; 95% CI: 0.5-0.8] and manual labor work [AOR=0.7; 95% CI: 0.6-0.9]. Conclusions Increased age, married women, living in an urban residence and having at least four children were the main predictors of overweight and obesity while higher education working in agriculture and working in manual labor were the main predictors associated with less overweight and obesity. Therefore, Cambodia NCD public health programs should consider those main predictors to further reduce overweight and obesity in the coming years.

Factors Associated with Overweight and Obesity among Women of Reproductive Age in Cambodia: Analysis of Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey

“…Descriptive analyses that coupled cross-tabular frequency distributions with chi-square tests were used to assess associations between explanatory variables and the outcome variable Overweight/Obese. Variables associated with the outcome variable with a significance level of p-value ≤ 0.10 or that had theoretical justification (for example, women's age, wealth index, alcohol consumption, residence, and geographic of region) were included in the unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression analyses [3].…”

“…In 2016, approximately 39% (1.9 billion) of adults aged 18 years and older were overweight and 13% (650 million) were obese worldwide [1]. In general, being overweight and obesity are major risk factors for several non-communicable diseases (NCDs) including cardiovascular and kidney diseases, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, musculoskeletal disorders, and other chronic diseases [2,3]. Moreover, among women of reproductive age (WRA), overweight and obesity have been associated with increased risk of pregnancy complications, caesarean section births, adverse birth outcomes, and infant mortality [4].…”

“…It was estimated that overweight and obesity contribute to rising healthcare costs in Cambodia (approximately 1.7% of its annual gross domestic product (GDP) per capita) and is a major contributor to mortality and decreased general health and productivity [9]. Regarding predictors of overweight and obesity among women include higher socioeconomic status, older age, marriage, living in an urban residence, and lack of education [3,[10][11][12]. Women with formal employment had higher odds of being overweight or obese than informally employed women [3,13].…”

“…Regarding predictors of overweight and obesity among women include higher socioeconomic status, older age, marriage, living in an urban residence, and lack of education [3,[10][11][12]. Women with formal employment had higher odds of being overweight or obese than informally employed women [3,13]. Also, women who used hormonal contraceptives such as oral contraceptive pills, implants, patches, and rings were at higher risk of being overweight or obese [14,15].…”

“…To our knowledge, factors associated with overweight and obesity specifically among WRA in Cambodia using an updated data have not been explored. A previous study on prevalence of overweight and obesity among WRA and its associated factors utilized data since 2014 [3]. In the context of Cambodia where the prevalence of overweight and obesity in WRA have increased rapidly, a thorough and comprehensive investigation of a wide range of socio-demographic and behavioral factors is warranted to identify the factors independently associated with having overweight and/or obesity.…”