Overweight and obesity among health clubs attendants in Kampala City, Uganda

Physical activity is a cornerstone of good health but technologically driven lifestyle has reduced it in urbanized societies. Physical inactivity leads to overweight and obesity (OWO) a risk factor for non communicable diseases (NCDs) and a public health challenge of the 21st century. Health clubs have emerged to provide programmes and therapy necessary to reduce OWO within Kampala City. However, little is known about the body weight status (BWS) of clients that visit them. A cross sectional survey was conducted to investigate if clients who visited health clubs in Kampala City have a health weight status. A total of 100 clients (53 male; 47 female) participated in the study. The Canadian guidelines for body weight classification using Body Mass Index (BMI) were used to categorise clients into underweight, normal weight, overweight and obese. Body weight status was determined using height and weight for BMI. SPSS software was used to analyse the data collected. Findings revealed that 64.2 % male and 83.0% female clients were OWO. The most prevalent of all categories was overweight (45.3% in males; 57.4% in females) and the least prevalent was obesity (18.9% males; 25.5% females). Overweight and obesity were higher in females clients (83.0%) than in male clients (64.2%). The study concluded that there was prevalence of OWO among clients who visited health clubs in Kampala City. Key words: Body mass index, body weight abnormalities, Kampala, obesity, overweight, physical activity