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  • Original Article
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Epidemiology

Global differences between women and men in the prevalence of obesity: is there an association with gender inequality?

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 68, pages 1101–1106 (2014)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/objectives:

In most populations the prevalence of obesity is greater in women than in men; however, the magnitude of the difference between the sexes varies significantly by country. We considered the role of gender inequality in explaining these disparities.

Subjects/methods:

We undertook an ecological analysis of internationally comparable obesity prevalence data to examine the association between indicators of gender inequality and the differences between men and women in obesity prevalence. Gender inequality was assessed using three measures: the Gender Inequality Index, the Global Gender Gap Index and the Social Institutions and Gender Index. We fitted multiple regression models to examine the association.

Results:

We found that the prevalence of obesity across countries shows gendered patterning with greater prevalence and greater heterogeneity in women than in men (P<0.001). We also found that two of three measures of gender inequality were significantly associated with the sex differences in obesity prevalence across countries.

Conclusions:

The patterning of obesity across countries is gendered. However, the association between global measures of gender inequality and the sex gap in obesity is dependent on the measure used. Further research is needed to investigate the mechanisms that underpin the gendered nature of obesity prevalence.

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Acknowledgements

We thank David Macleod and Dr. George B. Ploubidis for advice on the statistical aspects of the analysis. We also thank Professors Chris Frost and David Leon for their input on an earlier version of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK

    F Garawi, K Devries, N Thorogood & R Uauy

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  1. F Garawi
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  2. K Devries
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  3. N Thorogood
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  4. R Uauy
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Correspondence to F Garawi.

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Garawi, F., Devries, K., Thorogood, N. et al. Global differences between women and men in the prevalence of obesity: is there an association with gender inequality?. Eur J Clin Nutr 68, 1101–1106 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.86

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