Changes of overweight and obesity in the adult Swiss population according to educational level, from 1992 to 2007.

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Serval ID
serval:BIB_005C6A0C529C
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Changes of overweight and obesity in the adult Swiss population according to educational level, from 1992 to 2007.
Journal
BMC public health
Author(s)
Marques-Vidal P., Bovet P., Paccaud F., Chiolero A.
ISSN
1471-2458 (Electronic)
ISSN-L
1471-2458
Publication state
Published
Issued date
22/02/2010
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
10
Pages
87
Language
english
Notes
Publication types: Journal Article
Publication Status: epublish
Abstract
In many high income developed countries, obesity is inversely associated with educational level. In some countries, a widening gap of obesity between educational groups has been reported. The aim of this study was to assess trends in body mass index (BMI) and in prevalence of overweight and obesity and their association with educational level in the adult Swiss population.
Four cross-sectional National health interview surveys conducted in 1992/93 (n = 14,521), 1997 (n = 12,474), 2002 (n = 18,908) and 2007 (n = 17,879) using representative samples of the Swiss population (age range 18-102 years). BMI was derived from self-reported data. Overweight was defined as BMI > or = 25 and <30 kg/m(2), and obesity as BMI > or = 30 kg/m(2).
Mean (+/- standard deviation) BMI increased from 24.7 +/- 3.6 in 1992/3 to 25.4 +/- 3.6 kg/m2 in 2007 in men and 22.8 +/- 3.8 to 23.7 +/- 4.3 kg/m(2) in women. Between 1992/3 and 2007, the prevalence of overweight + obesity increased from 40.4% to 49.5% in men and from 22.3% to 31.3% in women, while the prevalence of obesity increased from 6.3% to 9.4% in men and from 4.9% to 8.5% in women. The rate of increase in the prevalence of obesity was greater between 1992/3 and 2002 (men: +0.26%/year; women: +0.31%/year) than between 2002 and 2007 (men: +0.10%/year; women: +0.10%/year). A sizable fraction (approximately 25%) of the increasing mean BMI was due to increasing age of the participants over time. The increase was larger in low than high education strata of the population. BMI was strongly associated with low educational level among women and this gradient remained fairly constant over time. A weaker similar gradient by educational level was apparent in men, but it tended to increase over time.
In Switzerland, overweight and obesity increased between 1992 and 2007 and was associated with low education status in both men and women. A trend towards a stabilization of mean BMI levels was noted in most age categories since 2002. The increase in the prevalence of obesity was larger in low education strata of the population. These findings suggest that obesity preventive measures should be targeted according to educational level in Switzerland.

Keywords
Adult, Body Mass Index, Cross-Sectional Studies, Educational Status, Female, Health Surveys, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Multivariate Analysis, Obesity/epidemiology, Overweight/epidemiology, Prevalence, Surveys and Questionnaires, Switzerland/epidemiology
Pubmed
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Create date
23/02/2010 14:35
Last modification date
20/08/2019 12:22
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