Evaluation of Obesity and Use of Weight Loss Methods with Relation to Sociodemographics

Obesity and its comorbidities represent major concern worldwide, so the aim of the current study is to investigate the prevalence of obesity and the use of weight loss medication in Saudi populations. A community-based, cross-sectional survey, conducted in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from September to November 2013. Enrolled participant was asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire; the questionnaires were distributed to friends, relatives, and governmental sector hospitals. Body mass index (BMI) was used as an obesity indicator. A total of 312 participants were enrolled, 262 participants were included. The prevalence rate of overweight and obesity in the present study were 26% and 16.1%, respectively. Overweight and obesity prevalence were showed in age (36-45years) (34.6% and 42.2%), respectively. Surprisingly, 47.2 % of bachelor carriers did not know their IBW and 66.6% of participants with above bachelor degree were wrong about their IBW. 48.8% of the participants had no family history of obesity. Additionally, the current study showed that 22.5% had chronic diseases, 5% of them had diabetes. Regarding the use of weight loss managements, only 10% of the participants used pharmacological treatments, 25% used herbs and only 1.5% underwent a bariatric surgery. The current study revealed an increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity among study participants that indicates the necessity of more population's education and governmental cooperation to increase the community awareness for the importance of doing physical activity and cut off dietary risk factors.