Overnutrition and associated factors among adults aged 20 years and above in fishing communities in the urban Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana

Objective The study aimed to highlight the determinants of overnutrition (overweight plus obesity) in fishing communities and establish if these were the same as reported elsewhere in Ghana. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting The study was conducted in Idun, Ola and Duakor fishing communities in Cape Coast, Ghana. Subjects Adults (n 252) aged 20 to 50 years. Results Results showed that 32 % of participants were overweight/obese (BMI ≥ 25·0 kg/m 2). Participants' mean age was 31·7 (sd 1·0) years, they had 13·7 (sd 8·1) mean years of formal education, their median monthly income was $US 7·4 (interquartile range $US 3·3, 20·0) and their median daily energy intake was 7·3 (interquartile range 5·3, 9·8) MJ. Significant associations (P < 0·05) were found between BMI and gender, age, years of education, fat intake and marital status. Females were almost eight times more likely to be overweight/obese than males (adjusted OR = 7·7; 95 % CI 3·6, 16·4). Persons aged ≥40 years were about six times more likely to be overweight/obese than those aged 20-29 years (adjusted OR = 6·1; 95 % CI 2·6, 14·1). Married people were nearly three times more likely to be overweight/obese than singles (adjusted OR = 2·8; 95 % Cl 1·4, 5·7). People with more than 13 years of formal education (adjusted OR = 0·3; 95 % CI 0·1, 0·9) and people with >30 % fat contribution to daily energy intake (adjusted OR = 0·3; 95 % CI 0·1, 0·6) had reduced odds of being overweight/obese. Conclusions Overnutrition was prevalent in the fishing communities and associated with factors such as age, gender, marital status, educational status and fat intake. © The Authors 2012.