The Relationship Between Fast Food Consumption and Obesity Among Adults at Pekan Labuhan Health Center, Medan, Indonesia
Obesity is defined as an excessive accumulation of body fat resulting from a prolonged imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure, which may lead to various physical and psychosocial health complications. In Indonesia, the prevalence of adult obesity has reached approximately 22%, affecting around 625,000 individuals. One primary contributing factor to weight gain is the frequent consumption of high-calorie foods, such as sugary beverages, fast food, and items with a high glycemic index. This study investigated the association between fast food consumption and obesity among adults. An analytical cross-sectional study involved adult participants at the Pekan Labuhan Community Health Center in Medan who met specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were obtained through structured interviews to assess the frequency of fast food consumption, alongside anthropometric measurements, including body weight, height, and calculation of Body Mass Index (BMI). The results indicated that 63% of the adult population in this community health center were classified as obese, and 72% reported frequent fast food consumption. Statistical analysis using the Pearson correlation test demonstrated a significant relationship between fast food consumption and obesity (p=0.001). The findings suggest that a higher frequency of fast food intake is significantly associated with increased obesity risk. These results underscore the importance of dietary education and public health strategies aimed at reducing fast food consumption to combat the rising prevalence of obesity.
INTRODUCTION
Obesity is when excessive fat accumulates due to an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure over time11. The increasing prevalence of obesity has made it a significant public health problem22. In the last 30 years, the figure for obesity increased to 47.1% in adolescents and 27.5% in adults. The incidence of obesity has increased, with more than 400 million people worldwide experiencing obesity. According to WHO, obesity in people from the Asia-Pacific region is characterized using Body Mass Index (BMI) measurements, with results of ≥25 kg/m233.
In low and middle-income countries, overweight and obesity rates are increasing, especially in urban areas. A study conducted in China revealed that the prevalence of obesity in 12,543 participants monitored for 22 years increased from 2.15 to 13.99% in both sexes, adjusted for age, namely in women from 2,78 to 13.22%. And man from 1.46 to 14.99%44. Based on data from an Adult Health study in Indonesia in 2018, it was found that 22% or around 625,000 adults in Indonesia were obese55. Obesity is a problem that causes several chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, stroke, coronary heart disease, cancer, and others. Apart from that, the increase in death rates is also due to the many diseases caused by obesity66.
Most people consider fast food the right solution to meet their daily food needs. Apart from its practicality, the promotion of modern food management has caused fast food to be valued as nutritious. Fast food is high in calories, fat, salt, sugar, and additives that can cause weight gain, such as fizzy drinks, fast food, and foods with a high glycemic index, often found in urban areas77.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
This study is an analytical study with a cross-sectional design to look at the relationship between fast food consumption and the incidence of obesity in adult society at Pekan Labuhan Health Center, Medan City. The study uses a questionnaire that has been used by several researchers in Indonesia and has been tested for validation and reliability. This research was conducted at the Pekan Labuhan Health Center, Medan, Indonesia. This research was carried out from January to February 2024.
The population in this study was adults living in the Pekan Labuhan Community Health Center, Medan, Indonesia. The inclusion criteria for this research sample are adults aged 26-45 years who do not have a history of diabetes mellitus, hypercholesterolemia, and hypertension and do not take drugs that cause obesity, such as paroxetine, valproic acid, amitriptyline, insulin, and prednisone, which are assessed based on the history taking.
BMI assessment criteria are based on the Asia-Pacific assessment with a range of underweight (<18,5kg/m2), standard (18.5–22.9 kg/m2), overweight (≥23 kg/m2), obesity grade 1 (18.5 – 22.9 kg/m2), and obesity grade 2(≥30kg/m2). The infrequency of fast food consumption is <45, while the frequency is ≥ 45.
This research has received ethical approval from the Health Research Ethics Committee of Universitas Sumatera Utara on February 16, 2024, number 133/KEPK/USU/2024.
RESULTS
Based onTable 1, 41% of respondents were in early adulthood, and 59% were in late adulthood. More Female respondents (57%) than male respondents (43%). The nutritional status of the respondent’s average body weight is 65.43 kg, and the average body height is 157.81 cm. There were 37 respondents in obesity grade 1 and 26 in obesity grade 2. As for the criteria for the frequency of consuming fast food, 28 respondents were infrequent (28%), and 72 respondents were frequent (72%).
Table 2 shows that respondents who frequently consume fast food are more obese than respondents who rarely consume fast food, namely 57% and 6%. The Spearman correlation test results obtained a p-value of 0.001 (p < 0.05), which shows a relationship between fast food consumption and obesity in adult society. The Spearman correlation test results obtained an r-value of 0.489, which shows that the relationship between fast food consumption and obesity is moderately correlated.
Variable | (n=88) | p-value |
Age, n (%) | ||
Early adult | 41 (41%) | |
Late adult | 59 (59%) | |
Sex, n (%) | ||
Man | 43 (43%) | |
Woman | 57 (57%) | |
Weight, kg | 65.43 (38-105) | 0,133¹ |
Height, cm | 157.81 (± 8.544) | 0,200¹ |
Nutritional status, n (%) | ||
Underweight | 8 (8%) | |
Normoweight | 17 (17%) | |
Overweight | 12 (19.3%) | |
Obesity grade1 | 37 (21.6%) | |
Obesity grade2 | 26 (14.8%) | |
Fast food consumption, n(%) | ||
Infrequently | 28 (28%) | |
Frequently | 72 (72%) | |
| Nutritional Status | Consumption frequency | Total | p-Value | r-Value | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infrequently | Frequently | |||||||
| n | % | n | % | n | % | |||
Underweight | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 0.001¹ | 0.489¹ |
Normoweight | 11 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 17 | 17 | ||
Overweight | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 12 | ||
Obesity grade1 | 5 | 5 | 32 | 32 | 37 | 37 | ||
Obesity grade 2 | 1 | 1 | 25 | 25 | 26 | 26 | ||
Total | 28 | 28 | 72 | 72 | 100 | 100 | ||
DISCUSSION
The results of this study show that the prevalence of overweight, obesity 1, and obesity 2 in late adulthood is 58.3%, 70.3%, and 69.2%. This is in line with research conducted by Septiyanti and Seniwati in 2020, which showed that the incidence of obesity increases with age, with the highest prevalence occurring at the age of 40-59 years. Based on the age range, the highest prevalence of obesity is in late adulthood, namely 44 %.
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