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  • Original Article
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Body mass index (BMI) dynamics in vietnam

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 62, pages 78–86 (2008)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective:

To provide an overview of dynamic shifts in body mass index (BMI) and nutritional status patterns of the Vietnamese population from 1992 to 2002.

Design:

Nationally representative, cross-sectional surveys.

Setting and subjects:

Secondary data obtained from The Living Standard Survey in 1992 (24 068 individuals) and the National Health Survey in 2002 (158 019 individuals).

Methods:

Nutrition status was defined by comparing measured BMI, grouped for under- and overweight with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2000 BMI growth charts for the 2–17 year-olds and the World Health Organization 1995 cutoff points for the 18–65 year-olds.

Results:

Over the 1992 and 2002 period, minimal changes were observed in the prevalence of overweight (from 1.4% (95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.0–1.8) to 1.8% (1.6–2.0)) and underweight (from 32.1% (30.4–33.7) to 33.5% (32.8–34.1)) among 2–17 year-olds. In contrast, among 18–65 year-olds, the prevalence of overweight and obesity increased (from 2.0% (1.5–2.4) to 5.2% (5.0–5.4)) and underweight declined (from 32.6% (31.2–33.9) to 24.8% (24.3–25.3)). Urban residents experienced larger reductions in underweight and increases in overweight than rural residents. Analyses of BMI levels for the 15th, 50th and 85th percentiles, by age, revealed a trend of increasing BMI that was higher among adults, females and urban residents.

Conclusion:

Although underweight remains the main concern, overweight is an emerging problem in Vietnam. Early prevention is needed to prevent overweight from causing undesirable effects on health and economic in the transitional period.

Sponsorship:

Vietnam Educational Foundation (VEF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH R01-HD30880 and R01-HD38700).

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Acknowledgements

This research is financially supported in part by Vietnam Educational Foundation and NIH (R01-HD30880 and R01-HD38700). We thank the Vietnam Ministry of Health for providing us the Vietnam National Health Survey 2002 data and the Vietnam General Statistical Office for providing us the Vietnam Living Standard Survey 1992–1993 data. We thank Frances Dancy for administrative assistance, Tom Swasey for graphics assistance and Bill Shapbell for his assistance in editing.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutrition and Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA

    N T Tuan & B M Popkin

  2. Department of Nutrition and Food Safety, Hanoi Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam

    P D Tuong

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  1. N T Tuan
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  2. P D Tuong
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  3. B M Popkin
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to B M Popkin.

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Conflict of interest

There are no potential conflicts of interest, these data have not been published or used before in any manner in a journal article, and the abstract was presented at Experimental Biology (EB) 2006.

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Tuan, N., Tuong, P. & Popkin, B. Body mass index (BMI) dynamics in vietnam. Eur J Clin Nutr 62, 78–86 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602675

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