Overweight and obesity doubled over a 6-year period in young women living in poverty in Mexico.
OBJECTIVE
To document the changes in BMI and the prevalence of overweight and obesity in young women living in poverty in a semi-urban community in Mexico.


METHODS
Women who had previously participated in a longitudinal research study (1997-2000) were re-assessed in 2005. Anthropometric measurements were obtained using standard procedures, and socio-demographic questionnaires were administered. Total and annual rate of change in BMI and change in the prevalence of overweight and obesity (BMI > or = 25.0 and > or =30.0) were estimated.


RESULTS
Mean age in 2005 was 30.0 +/- 5.7 years (n = 683) and time between recruitment and follow-up was 6.4 +/- 1.0 years. Mean change in BMI was +3.6 +/- 2.7 (range -8.2 to +14.6). In 2005, 500 (73.2%) women were overweight, up from 263 (38.5%) in the original assessment. The prevalence of obesity tripled over the follow-up period (from 9.8% to 30.3%). The mean annual rate of change in BMI was +0.6 (+/-0.4). After adjustment for age and parity at baseline, an annual rate of change of BMI above the sample median (>0.5) was associated with lower levels of formal education.


CONCLUSIONS
The annual increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in this sample is double that which was reported at a national level in Mexico. An understanding of the determinants of this rapid increase among the women living in poverty in Mexico is urgently needed.
Neufeld
Lynnette M
LM
Division of Nutri tional Epidemiology, National Institute of Public Health, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. neufeld@insp.mx
Hernández-Cordero
Sonia
S
Fernald
Lia C
LC
Ramakrishnan
Usha
U
D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011204:Poverty Areas; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors