THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OVERWEIGHT AND SOCIO DEMOGRAPHIC STATUS AMONG ADOLESCENT GIRLS IN INDONESIA

Background: Adolescent need special attention due to their physical and psychosocial development. Studies about nutritional status of adolescent girls have been least explored in Indonesia. Objective: to assess overweight adolescence girls related to their socio-demographic condition. Methods: the data was part of the Basic Health Research 2010, which wasa cross sectional and non intervention study. It covered 33 provinces, 441 districts/municipalities, and 70,000 households.The sampling was based on economical status and urban/rural ratio. Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated from weight and height measured from all participants. The author analyzed 21,799 non pregnant girls aged 10-19 years by calculating Crude odds ratio and Adjusted odds ratio between overweight and normal weight and their socio demographic variables. Results: 45.3% underweight (BMI < 18.5), 44.0% normal weight (BMI 18.5-22.9), 5.7% overweight-1 (BMI 23.0-24.9), 4.0% overweight-2 (25.0-29.9) and 1.1% obese (BMI ~ 30). Those who were married were 1.87 fold more likely to be overweight (95% Cl: 1.48-2.36), those who lived at urban area were 1.26 fold more likely to be overweight (95% Cl:1.09-1.45). In adjusted models, those aged 10-12 years were 1.48 fold more likely to be overweight (95% Cl: 1.25-1. 76) and those with the highest quintile was 1.82 fold more likely to be overweight (95% Cl: 1.47-2.24). Conclusion: The high levels of overweight among adolescent girls were a public health concern. A higher prevalence of overweight was mainly found in married adolescent, those who lived in urban area, the younger ones and those with higher socioeconomic strata.It needs a comprehensive adolescent health programs. Key words: overweight, girls, adolescent, Body Mass Index, married, rural, urban, socioeconomic status, educatio