Prevalence of overweight and obesity among police officers in Riyadh City and risk factors for cardiovascular disease
Open Access
- 14 April 2017
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Lipids in Health and Disease
- Vol. 16 (1), 79
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s12944-017-0467-9
Abstract
Despite the prevalence of overweight and obesity and increases in associated diseases such as diabetes and heart disease in the Saudi population, no studies have addressed the spread of obesity among Saudi police officers. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the prevalence of overweight and obesity and associations with biochemical parameters among the police in Riyadh. The study involved a cross-sectional survey of 160 police officers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, lipid profiles and fasting blood sugar levels were measured for all individuals. According to the results, the average body mass index (BMI) was 27.5 ± 5.1, indicating an increase in overweight in this population and 66.9% were overweight or obese. Moreover, the mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure values were 119.5 and 79.4 mmHg, respectively, within normal limits. The mean total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), and triglyceride (TG) levels were 187.5, 43.9, 119.5 and 124.5 mg/100 ml, respectively. These BMI and biochemical findings suggest a high proportion of overweight and obese individuals in the sample population, as well as an increase in the proportion of individuals with high levels of biochemical indicators who are therefore susceptible to heart disease and diabetes. The study recommends using preventive programs to combat obesity and overweight and related diseases and conducting further studies using measures other than BMI.Keywords
This publication has 23 references indexed in Scilit:
- Obesity in Gulf CountriesInternational Journal of Health Sciences, 2014
- Nutraceuticals and dyslipidaemia: Beyond the common therapeuticsJournal of Functional Foods, 2014
- Nutrition transition in Bangladesh: is the country ready for this double burdenObesity Reviews, 2013
- Prevalence, Trends and Associated Socio-Economic Factors of Obesity in South AsiaObesity Facts, 2013
- A systematic review of job-specific workers’ health surveillance activities for fire-fighting, ambulance, police and military personnelInternationales Archiv für Arbeitsmedizin, 2011
- Health disparities in police officers: comparisons to the U.S. general population.2011
- Prevalence Rates and Costs of Metabolic Syndrome and Associated Risk Factors Using Employees' Integrated Laboratory Data and Health Care ClaimsJournal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2011
- Occupational injuries among emergency respondersAmerican Journal of Industrial Medicine, 2009
- High prevalence of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular risk among police personnel compared to general population in India.2008
- Insulin Resistance Syndrome Predicts the Risk of Coronary Heart Disease and Stroke in Healthy Middle-Aged MenArteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, 2000