Anthropometric status of nurses working at a private hospital in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal

Health SA Gesondheid

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Anthropometric status of nurses working at a private hospital in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal
 
Creator Yegambaram, Leah B. Pillay, Kirthee
 
Subject Dietetics; Anthropometric status anthropometric status; nurses; overweight; obesity; body mass index; waist circumference; private hospital; KwaZulu-Natal
Description Background: The prevalence of overweight and obesity among nurses in South Africa (SA) is increasing. This is a concern as overweight and obesity increase the risk for non-communicable diseases (NCDs).Aim: This study aimed to determine the anthropometric status of nurses working at a private hospital and to identify the factors related to a high body mass index (BMI).Setting: This study was conducted at a private hospital in Pietermaritzburg (PMB), KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).Methods: Weight, height and waist circumference (WC) measurements were taken, using standardised procedures. A self-administered questionnaire was developed to collect data on factors associated with a high BMI.Results: Most participants were overweight or obese (86.2%; n = 112). The mean BMI of females (33.55 kg/m2) was significantly higher than that of males (28.08 kg/m2) (p = 0.043). Nurses who did not smoke had a significantly higher BMI (33.84 kg/m2) than those who smoked (29.58 kg/m2) (p = 0.030). Nurses who skipped meals had a higher mean BMI (33.75 kg/m2) than those who did not skip meals (29.63 kg/m2) (p = 0.005). Most females had a WC above 88 cm (66.2%; n = 86), indicating a substantially increased risk for metabolic complications.Conclusion: There was a high prevalence of overweight and obesity among the nurses according to BMI. According to WC, most female nurses had an increased risk for metabolic complications. Being female, not smoking and skipping meals were associated with a higher BMI.Contribution: This study highlights the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity among nurses.
 
Publisher AOSIS Publishing
 
Contributor
Date 2022-11-21
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Survey
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/hsag.v27i0.1940
 
Source Health SA Gesondheid; Vol 27 (2022); 8 pages 2071-9736 1025-9848
 
Language eng
 
Relation
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https://hsag.co.za/index.php/hsag/article/view/1940/html https://hsag.co.za/index.php/hsag/article/view/1940/epub https://hsag.co.za/index.php/hsag/article/view/1940/xml https://hsag.co.za/index.php/hsag/article/view/1940/pdf
 
Coverage Pietermaritzburg; KwaZulu-Natal February 2020 Age; Gender; Ethnicity
Rights Copyright (c) 2022 Leah B. Yegambaram, Kirthee Pillay https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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