OBESITY

PREVALENCE AMONG DRIVERS AND CONDUCTORS IN MULTAN, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Obesity is currently considered as a global issue to public health. Overweight and
obesity among professional workers, particularly among professional drivers and conductors
is becoming an equally challenging, yet under recognized, problem in developing countries
including Pakistan. The study aimed to assess the prevalence of obesity and central obesity
among professional drivers and conductors in Multan city, Pakistan. Study Design: A crosssectional
study. Methodology: A total of 345 professional drivers and conductors were studies
for public transport and loader vehicles. The anthropometric characteristics of the participants
were focused including the body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-hip
ratio (WHR). Along with descriptive statistics and percentages, two-sample t-test was used.
Results: The mean BMI of all the participants was 24.35. More than 50% of the drivers and
conductors had excess body weight (i.e. BMI > 25 kg/m2). For central obesity, 86 (43.7%)
drivers and 28(18.9%) of conductors had increased waist (i.e. WC > 94 cm). Similarly, 34.5%
of the said professionals had WHR above the adequate level (i.e. WHR > 0.95). The averages
of BMI, WC and WHR of the public transport vehicle drivers were significantly higher than those
of the loader vehicle drivers. Conclusion: The present study concludes that the professional
drivers and conductors are much likely to have excess weight.