Prevalence of abdominal obesity among Chinese adults in 2011

Abstract

BackgroundThe prevalence of abdominal obesity is increasing dramatically worldwide. This study aimed to estimate the current prevalence of abdominal obesity from the 2011 China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) and compare the data with other countries.MethodsWaist circumference (WC) of 12,326 Chinese adults (aged 20 years or older) from the 2011 CHNS were analyzed by age group and region. Abdominal obesity was defined as a WC ≥90 cm for men and WC ≥80 cm for women based on World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations for Asians.ResultsIn 2011, the age-adjusted mean WC was 85.9 cm (95% confidence interval [CI], 85.6–86.2 cm) for men and 80.7 cm (95% CI, 80.4–80.9 cm) for women. Based on the WHO recommendations, the age-adjusted prevalence of abdominal obesity was 44.0% (95% CI, 43.1%–44.8%) overall, 35.3% (95% CI, 34.1%–36.6%) in men, and 51.7% (95% CI, 50.5%–52.9%) in women. Moreover, the age-adjusted prevalence was 44.0% (95% CI, 42.7%–45.2%) in rural populations, 42.5% (95% CI, 40.7%–44.2%) in urban populations, and 45.2% (95% CI, 43.5%–46.9%) in megacity populations. The prevalence in China (35.3% for men and 51.7% for women) was lower than in Japan (50.8% for men) and the United States (43.5% for men and 64.7% for women). Similar results were observed when applying the criteria suggested by the Working Group on Obesity in China.ConclusionsIn 2011, the age-adjusted prevalence of abdominal obesity in China was 35.3% in men and 51.7% in women.

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“…is high. Compared to other studies among women, prevalence of CO in this study as defined by WC is higher than 53.8% found in Nigeria [17], 47.1% among Saudi women [18], 51.7% national prevalence of Chinese women [8], 57.7% among Lome women in Togo [19]. The prevalence in this study is comparable to the finding of an earlier study among Nairobi women in Kibera that found CO prevalence at 67.5% [20].…”

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“…Although great efforts have been made to control the weight of the population in China, the prevalence of obesity continues to increase, especially in the rural areas 2. According to the data obtained in the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) in 2011, the prevalence of abdominal obesity was 44.0% in rural China 3. A recent study also showed that the age-standardised prevalence of abdominal obesity was 43.71% in rural Chinese adults 4.…”

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“…Du and collaborators [23] suggested that the diet seems to be more important than physical activity to explain the association between education and anthropometric markers of intra-abdominal adipose tissue. The education factor seems to influence the risk of obesity mainly for being associated to the consumption of industrialized food, rich in fat and sugar, nevertheless, in countries in dietary transition, including Brazil, receiving constant inflow of food products, such as processed food with low nutritional values [24].…”