SHORT COMMUNICATION Urban–rural differences in BMI, overweight and obesity in Norway (1990 and 2001)

• Main Authors: Elisabeth Svensson, Deborah L. Reas, Inger Sandanger, Jan F. Nygård
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Lofoten; Norway
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.1033.6575; http://sjp.sagepub.com/content/35/5/555.full.pdf

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine body mass index and the prevalence of overweight and obesity in 1990 and 2001 in Oslo and Lofoten, Norway. Methods: A randomly selected study population of 1,924 individuals (OsLof) underwent a structured personal interview in 1990. In 2001, 1,629 individuals underwent the same interview. These samples were analysed as two cross-sectional datasets. Results: Overall mean BMI in 1990 was 24.7 for men and 22.9 for women, increasing significantly in 2001 to 26.1 and 24.6, respectively. In 1990, 37 % of men and 20 % of women were overweight, while 5 % of men and 4 % of women were obese. The corresponding figures for 2001 were 48 % and 27 % for overweight, and 12 % and 11 % for obesity, respectively. Discussion: The greatest increases in average BMI occurred for the youngest (18–34 years) for both genders and geographic regions. In 1990, urban–rural differences existed for mean BMI and proportion overweight for both genders, although geographic differences persisted only for women 10 years later. Key Words: BMI, obesity overweight, obesity, Norway, trends