Overweight and Obesity among Asian Indian Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Overweight and obesity, although a global pandemic, its prevalence varies based on environmental conditions and individual socio-economic status.At the population level, genetic make-up, geo-climatic and socio-economic conditions are regulatory factors and diet exerts control over overweight and obesity at individual level.This systematic review and meta-analysis was set out to calculate the pooled prevalence of overweight and obesity among Asian Indian adults.Based on Body Mass Index (BMI), the pooled prevalence of overweight and obesity among Asian Indian adults are 20.41% and 23.54% respectively.In this meta-analysis, 41.64% adults have had mean BMI23 kg/m 2 , which is categorized by WHO as an overweight for Asian inhabitants.In case of habitat variation, adults from urban areas showed high prevalence for both overweight (20.15%) and obesity (34.39%) compared to their rural counterparts.Unhealthy food habits and sedentary lifestyles are main reasons of it.This systematic review and meta-analysis concluded that the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity among Indian adults of both sexes are increasing day by day.Prevention should begin at an early age, when changes in lifestyle can reduce the incidence of overweight and obesity and other associated diseases.