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. 2017 Sep;27(9):413-419.
doi: 10.1016/j.je.2016.08.014. Epub 2017 Apr 15.

Recent trends in the prevalence of underweight, overweight, and obesity in Korean adults: The Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 1998 to 2014

Hyun-Young Shin  1 , Hee-Taik Kang  2
Affiliations

Recent trends in the prevalence of underweight, overweight, and obesity in Korean adults: The Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 1998 to 2014

Hyun-Young Shin et al. J Epidemiol. 2017 Sep.

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: Recent obesity studies have reported that the rising trend in obesity has stabilized or leveled off. Our study aimed to update estimates of the recent prevalence trend in obesity based on the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1998-2014.

Methods: A total of 66,663 subjects were included and defined as being either underweight, overweight, or obese, in accordance with a BMI of 18.5 kg/m2 or lower, 23 kg/m2 or higher, and 25 kg/m2 or higher, respectively.

Results: The prevalence of underweight in KNHANES I through VI surveys was 4.7%, 3.3%, 3.4%, 3.3%, 2.7%, and 2.6%, respectively, in men (P for trend = 0.03, β = −0.002) and 5.4%, 6.1%, 5.8%, 6.5%, 7.6%, and 7.5%, respectively, in women (P for trend = 0.04, β = 0.003). Also for KNHANES I through VI, the respective prevalence of overweight/obesity was 50.3%, 57.2%, 62.5%, 62.3%, 61.4%, and 62.3% in men (p for trend<0.01, β = 0.009) and 48.3%, 50.3%, 50.0%, 47.8%, 47.0%, and 45.3% in women (p for trend<0.01, β = -0.01), respectively.

Conclusions: The obesity occurrence in men was trending upward with respect to overweight/obesity and for grade 1 and 2 obesity, but not for abdominal obesity. However, the obesity trends in women were leveling off from overweight/obesity, grade 1 obesity, and abdominal obesity measures. Further studies are required with data on muscle mass and adiposity for effective obesity control policies.

Keywords: Obesity; Overweight; Prevalence; Underweight; Visceral obesity.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Prevalence of underweight, overweight/obesity, grade 1 obesity, grade 2 obesity, and abdominal obesity in men and women, according to KNHANES phase. 1A. Prevalence of being underweight. 1B. Prevalence of overweight/obesity. 1C. Prevalence of grade 1 obesity. 1D. Prevalence of grade 2 obesity. 1E. Prevalence of abdominal obesity. P-values for trends were determined by logistic regression analyses after setting the KNHANES phase as the continuous variable. Definition: Underweight, BMI <18.5 kg/m2; Overweight/obesity, BMI ≥23 kg/m2; Grade 1 obesity, BMI ≥25 kg/m2; Grade 2 obesity, BMI ≥30 kg/m2; Abdominal obesity, waist circumference ≥90 cm in men, ≥85 cm in women.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Odds ratios estimated by adjusting age groups (20–39 years, 40–59 years, and ≥60 years) for the prevalence of being underweight, having overweight/obesity, grade 1 obesity, grade 2 obesity and abdominal obesity in men and women, according to the KNHANES phase. 2A. Men. 2B. Women. P-values for trends were determined by logistic regression analyses after setting KNHANES phase as the continuous variable. Definition: Underweight, BMI <18.5 kg/m2; Overweight/obesity, BMI ≥23 kg/m2; Grade 1 obesity, BMI ≥25 kg/m2; Grade 2 obesity, BMI ≥30 kg/m2; Abdominal obesity, waist circumference ≥90 cm in men, ≥85 cm in women.
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