Secular trends of obesity in Iran between 1999 and 2007: National Surveys of Risk Factors of Non-communicable Diseases.
BACKGROUND
Obesity is a rapidly progressing pandemic and a central feature of the metabolic syndrome. There is no solid evidence on the recent trends of obesity in Iran. In this study we present the secular trends of overweight and obesity among Iranian adults (25-64 years old) within an 8-year period (1999-2007).


METHODS
The analyses were performed on the datasets of three cross-sectional national surveys: The National Health Survey-1999 (n = 21,576), National Surveys of Risk Factors for Non-Communicable Diseases (SuRFNCD)-2005 (n = 70,945), and SuRFNCD-2007 (n = 4,186).


RESULTS
The overall prevalence of obesity increased from 13.6% in 1999 to 19.6% in 2005 and 22.3% in 2007 [odds ratio (OR) = 1.08 per year; P < 0.001]. For overweight subjects, the rates were, respectively, 32.2%, 35.8% and 36.3% (OR = 1.02 per year; P < 0.001). During these years, the mean body mass index (BMI) (kg/m(2)) increased from 25.03 in 1999, to 26.14 in 2005, and 26.47 and 2007 (P < 0.001). The increase in prevalence of obesity was seen in both males (OR = 1.09 per year; P < 0.001) and females (OR = 1.07 per year; P < 0.001) and both urban (OR = 1.07 per year; P < 0.001) and rural (OR = 1.10 per year; P < 0.001) residents.


CONCLUSIONS
In conclusion, the present study highlighted the rapid growth of obesity during recent years in Iran. Our findings indicate the crucial necessity of primary prevention programs to counteract this undesired condition.
Esteghamati
Alireza
A
Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center (EMRC), Vali-Asr Hospital, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. esteghamati@tums.ac.ir
Khalilzadeh
Omid
O
Mohammad
Kazem
K
Meysamie
Alipasha
A
Rashidi
Armin
A
Kamgar
Mandana
M
Abbasi
Mehrshad
M
Asgari
Fereshteh
F
Haghazali
Mehrdad
M
D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000367:Age Factors; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D016017:Odds Ratio; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D015995:Prevalence; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012737:Sex Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data