Prevalence and correlates of overweight and obesity among adolescents in northeastern China: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of overweight/obesity among adolescents and to evaluate the associated factors in this group in Changchun City, northeastern China.

Methods: A cross-sectional study of 1955 adolescents aged 11–18 years was conducted in Changchun City, using stratified cluster sampling. Parents and caregivers of children completed the questionnaires as requested without objection; the questionnaire included demographic characteristics and anthropometric parameters. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to analyze the relationship between overweight /obesity and related factors.

Results: In total, the prevalence of overweight was 12.7% (male 17.4%; female 10.1%), and the prevalence of obesity was 4.9% (male 8.8%; female 3.1%) in Changchun, Jilin Province. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was higher in males than that in females (P <0.001). Multivariate logistic regression showed that overweight and obesity were significantly associated with male sex (OR=1.91, 95% CI: 1.48-2.47), eating fresh fruits more than two days per week (OR=1.41, 95% CI: 1.09-1.84), eating quickly (OR=1.37, 95% CI: 1.06-1.78). The students who were not picky (OR=0.69, 95% CI: 0.53-0.90) were less likely to be overweight. And adolescents whose father were overweight or obese (OR=0.67, 95% CI: 0.52-0.86) or mother were overweight or obese (OR=0.72, 95% CI: 0.52-0.99) were less likely to be overweight.

Conclusion: The prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents in Changchun was high in recent years. The prevalence of overweight and obesity among males was higher than that among females. Sex, dietary habits (weekly frequency of fruit consumption, picky eating and slowness in eating) and parental weight were important factors for overweight and obesity in adolescents. Further research should be conducted on the health of adolescents in China and further intervention measures should be implemented to reduce the prevalence of overweight/obesity.