Abstract

Objectives: To determine the prevalence of and risk factors for obesity among reproductive age and postmenopausal women aged between 20-64 years in a semi-urban area.

Study Design: In this cross-sectional and analytic study conducted in Urla Health Center District in İzmir, 297 women was selected with systematic sampling method from a total of 3689 women aged 20-64 years. Obesity prevalence was taken as 30%, deviation as 5% and 96.3% of all women (n=286) could be reached. Data were collected through a face to face questionnaire and by body weight and height measurements. Obesity was defined as a body mass index of >30 kg/m2.

Results: Among all women, 82.5% were primary school graduates and/or never attended school; 94.4% were not in employment. The prevalence of obesity was 22.2% among women between 20-49 years and 41.1% among women between 50-64 years. All women aged 50-64 years were in menopausal period, and 6 women aged 20-49 years of age were in perimenopausal period. Univariate analysis showed that obesity was significantly associated with age (≥50 years, p=0.004), number of births (≥3 births, p=0.019), having a first degree obese relative (p<0.001), chronic diseases (p=0.034), and consumption of foods rich in carbohydrates (p=0.034). According to multivariate logistic regression analysis which included the above mentioned variables and oral contraceptive use; chronic diseases (p<0.001), obesity in the family (p<0.001) and high consumption of carbohydrate-rich foods (p=0.030) significantly increased obesity. There was no correlation between age and obesiy.

Conclusion: It was observed that 25.9% of 20-64 years old women in semi-urban area were obese and obesity increased with age. The genetic and environmental factors, chronical diseases and variables regarding reproductive health affect obesity prevalence.