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Title Overweight and obesity among Ghanaian residents in The Netherlands: how do they weigh against their urban and rural counterparts in Ghana?
Full text http://hdl.handle.net/1871/23508
Date 2009
Author(s) Agyemang, C.; Owusu-Dabo, E.; Jonge, J. de; Martins, D.; Ogedegbe, G.; Stronks, K.
Abstract Objective: To investigate differences in overweight and obesity between first-generation Dutch-Ghanaian migrants in The Netherlands and their rural and urban cotunterparts in Ghana. Design: Cross-sectional study. Subjects: A total of 1471 Ghanaians (rural Ghanaians, n 532; urban Ghanaians, n 787; Dutch-Ghanaians, n 152) aged >= 17 years.88888 Main outcome measures: Overweight (BMI >= 25 kg/m(2)) and obesity (BMI >= 30 kg/m(2)). Results: Dutch-Ghanaians had a significantly higher prevalence of overweight and obesity (men 69.1%, women 79.5%) than urban Ghanaians (men 22.0%, women 50.0%) and rural Ghanaians (men 10.3%, women 19.0%). Urban Ghanaian then and women also had a significantly higher prevalence of overweight and obesity than their rural Ghanaian counterparts. In a logistic regression analysis adjusting for age and education, the odds ratios for being overweight or obese were 3.10 (95% CI 1.75, 5.48) for urban Ghanaian men and 1906 (95% CI 8.98, 40.43) for Dutch-Ghanaian men compared with rural Ghanaian risen. Among women, the odds ratios for being overweight and obese were 3.84 (95% CI 2.66, 5.53) for urban Ghanaians;and 11.4 (95% CI 5.97, 22.07) for Dutch-Ghanaians compared with their rural Ghanaian counterparts. Conclusion: Our current findings give credence to earlier reports of an increase in the prevalence of overweight/obesity with urbanization within Africa and migration to industrialized countries. These findings indicate an urgent need to further assess migration-related factors that lead to these increases in overweight and obesity among migrants with non-Western background, and their impact on overweight- and obesity-related illnesses such as diabetes among these populations
Type of publication Article / Letter to editor; Scholarly publ. refereed; Journal article
Source 12; Public Health Nutrition; 909; 916; 7
Identifier Public Health Nutrition, 12(7), 909-916; 13689800; 237957
Repository Amsterdam - VU University of Amsterdam
Added to C-A: 2012-06-02;14:40:55