Sedentary lifestyle gnawing at urban women’s health

The Science and Society Division of the Ministry of Science and Technology under one of its projects has observed significant location based differences in cardio-metabolic risk factors in women in India. It found that the urban-middle class women have the highest risk compared to urban-poor and rural.

“We evaluated 6853 women for socioeconomic, lifestyle, anthropometric (measurement of the human individual) and biochemical risk factors. Mean levels of body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waist-hip ratio (WHR), systolic BP, fasting glucose and cholesterol in rural, urban-poor and urban-middle class women showed significantly increasing trends,” said Dr Anoop Misra, one of the authors of the research.

Age-adjusted prevalence of diabetes and risk factors among rural, urban-poor and urban-middle class women, respectively was found as diabetes, overweight BMI more than 25 kg/m2, waist more than 80 cm, waist more than 90 cm, WHR more than 0.9, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia. Inverse trend was observed for tobacco use.

“Our study shows high prevalence of multiple cardiovascular risk factors, including diabetes, in urban middle-aged women in India. The prevalence of obesity, abdominal obesity, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia and impaired fasting glucose is significantly greater in urban middle-class and urban-poor women compared to the rural,” said Dr Misra.

“There is a significantly increasing trend in all these metabolic factors with increasing urbanization. This corresponds with increasing levels of generalized and abdominal obesity, which are surrogates for greater dietary calorie and fat consumption and lower physical activity,” he said.

Doctors say that there is an urbanization related transition of overweight or obesity, abdominal obesity, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, impaired fasting glucose and diabetes. This transition is associated with greater fat consumption and lower physical activity.

Changes in diet have been attributed to economic growth leading to changes in food consumption, relative cost, availability and media and industry influences. Changes in physical activity have been attributed to mechanization at work and home. Change in transportation (e.g. increased motorised vehicle ownership), and changes in the built environment (e.g. increased urban sprawl and poor connectivity in residential areas) also lead to lower physical activity.

Greater tobacco use in rural women is reflection of lower literacy and is also influenced by environmental factors such as tobacco policy and greater social acceptability of smoking. Centre in previous year allocated over Rs 300 crores for management and diagnosis of lifestyle diseases in India.

AT RISK

• Urban-middle class women have the highest risk compared to urban-poor and rural.
   
• The prevalence of obesity, abdominal obesity, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia and impaired fasting glucose is significantly greater in urban middle-class and urban-poor women compared to the rural
   
• This transition is associated with greater fat consumption and lower physical activity.
   
• Centre in previous year allocated over Rs 300 crores for management and diagnosis of lifestyle diseases in India.