A cross-sectional study on the relationship between obesity and lifestyle factors among doctors working in a tertiary health-care center in Southern Odisha, India

ABSTRACT

Background: Non-communicable diseases are affecting millions of people worldwide. These diseases are linked to the lifestyle of the population. Hence, lifestyle modification may help reduce the disease burden. Due to work-life misbalance, many doctors are vulnerable to lifestyle-related disorders. Aims and Objectives: The objective of this study was to find the obesity parameters and lifestyle pattern and to find if any correlation exists between the obesity parameters and lifestyle score. Materials and Methods: We conducted this study in a tertiary care teaching hospital situated in Southern Odisha, India. The doctors attached to the teaching hospital were taken as a convenience sample. The anthropometric parameters were measured in the departmental research laboratory and the lifestyle score was obtained by the FANTASTIC lifestyle assessment instrument. The correlation between the FANTASTIC score and body fatness variables was tested. Results: A total of 152 doctors with a mean of 40.09 ± 9.92 years of age participated in this study. We found a significant negative correlation coefficient of FANTASTIC score with body mass index (BMI) (r = ?0.36, P < 0.0001), body fat % (r = ?0.25, P = 0.002), and visceral fat % (r = ?0.28, P < 0.0001). The age, waist circumference, and fat-free mass did not show any significant correlation. Conclusion: Some of the obesity parameters such as BMI, body fat, and visceral fat are negatively correlated with lifestyle scores. Hence, doctors with the lower lifestyle scores may tend to show a higher tendency toward obesity and vice versa. The doctors and the stakeholders should take care of healthy lifestyle promotion.