The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees.
BACKGROUND:Households from vulnerable groups experiencing epidemiological transitions are known to be affected concomitantly by under-nutrition and obesity. Yet, it is unknown to what extent this double burden affects refugee populations dependent on food assistance. We assessed the double burden of...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2012-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS Medicine |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3462761?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1819041844661583872 |
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| author | Carlos S Grijalva-Eternod Jonathan C K Wells Mario Cortina-Borja Nuria Salse-Ubach Mélody C Tondeur Carmen Dolan Chafik Meziani Caroline Wilkinson Paul Spiegel Andrew J Seal |
| author_facet | Carlos S Grijalva-Eternod Jonathan C K Wells Mario Cortina-Borja Nuria Salse-Ubach Mélody C Tondeur Carmen Dolan Chafik Meziani Caroline Wilkinson Paul Spiegel Andrew J Seal |
| author_sort | Carlos S Grijalva-Eternod |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BACKGROUND:Households from vulnerable groups experiencing epidemiological transitions are known to be affected concomitantly by under-nutrition and obesity. Yet, it is unknown to what extent this double burden affects refugee populations dependent on food assistance. We assessed the double burden of malnutrition among Western Sahara refugees living in a protracted emergency. METHODS AND FINDINGS:We implemented a stratified nutrition survey in October-November 2010 in the four Western Sahara refugee camps in Algeria. We sampled 2,005 households, collecting anthropometric measurements (weight, height, and waist circumference) in 1,608 children (6-59 mo) and 1,781 women (15-49 y). We estimated the prevalence of global acute malnutrition (GAM), stunting, underweight, and overweight in children; and stunting, underweight, overweight, and central obesity in women. To assess the burden of malnutrition within households, households were first classified according to the presence of each type of malnutrition. Households were then classified as undernourished, overweight, or affected by the double burden if they presented members with under-nutrition, overweight, or both, respectively. The prevalence of GAM in children was 9.1%, 29.1% were stunted, 18.6% were underweight, and 2.4% were overweight; among the women, 14.8% were stunted, 53.7% were overweight or obese, and 71.4% had central obesity. Central obesity (47.2%) and overweight (38.8%) in women affected a higher proportion of households than did GAM (7.0%), stunting (19.5%), or underweight (13.3%) in children. Overall, households classified as overweight (31.5%) were most common, followed by undernourished (25.8%), and then double burden-affected (24.7%). CONCLUSIONS:The double burden of obesity and under-nutrition is highly prevalent in households among Western Sahara refugees. The results highlight the need to focus more attention on non-communicable diseases in this population and balance obesity prevention and management with interventions to tackle under-nutrition. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T09:31:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3f80e4fc01474481a36dababa178f814 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1549-1277 1549-1676 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T09:31:27Z |
| publishDate | 2012-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
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| series | PLoS Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-3f80e4fc01474481a36dababa178f8142022-12-21T19:08:44ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Medicine1549-12771549-16762012-01-01910e100132010.1371/journal.pmed.1001320The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees.Carlos S Grijalva-EternodJonathan C K WellsMario Cortina-BorjaNuria Salse-UbachMélody C TondeurCarmen DolanChafik MezianiCaroline WilkinsonPaul SpiegelAndrew J SealBACKGROUND:Households from vulnerable groups experiencing epidemiological transitions are known to be affected concomitantly by under-nutrition and obesity. Yet, it is unknown to what extent this double burden affects refugee populations dependent on food assistance. We assessed the double burden of malnutrition among Western Sahara refugees living in a protracted emergency. METHODS AND FINDINGS:We implemented a stratified nutrition survey in October-November 2010 in the four Western Sahara refugee camps in Algeria. We sampled 2,005 households, collecting anthropometric measurements (weight, height, and waist circumference) in 1,608 children (6-59 mo) and 1,781 women (15-49 y). We estimated the prevalence of global acute malnutrition (GAM), stunting, underweight, and overweight in children; and stunting, underweight, overweight, and central obesity in women. To assess the burden of malnutrition within households, households were first classified according to the presence of each type of malnutrition. Households were then classified as undernourished, overweight, or affected by the double burden if they presented members with under-nutrition, overweight, or both, respectively. The prevalence of GAM in children was 9.1%, 29.1% were stunted, 18.6% were underweight, and 2.4% were overweight; among the women, 14.8% were stunted, 53.7% were overweight or obese, and 71.4% had central obesity. Central obesity (47.2%) and overweight (38.8%) in women affected a higher proportion of households than did GAM (7.0%), stunting (19.5%), or underweight (13.3%) in children. Overall, households classified as overweight (31.5%) were most common, followed by undernourished (25.8%), and then double burden-affected (24.7%). CONCLUSIONS:The double burden of obesity and under-nutrition is highly prevalent in households among Western Sahara refugees. The results highlight the need to focus more attention on non-communicable diseases in this population and balance obesity prevention and management with interventions to tackle under-nutrition. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3462761?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Carlos S Grijalva-Eternod Jonathan C K Wells Mario Cortina-Borja Nuria Salse-Ubach Mélody C Tondeur Carmen Dolan Chafik Meziani Caroline Wilkinson Paul Spiegel Andrew J Seal The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees. PLoS Medicine |
| title | The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees. |
| title_full | The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees. |
| title_fullStr | The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees. |
| title_short | The double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting: a cross-sectional study of Western Sahara refugees. |
| title_sort | double burden of obesity and malnutrition in a protracted emergency setting a cross sectional study of western sahara refugees |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3462761?pdf=render |
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