Prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents in school in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo

Introduction: overweight and obesity in adolescents are a major global public health issue due to their potential impact on health and increasing frequency. This study aims to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents attending public and private schools in Lubumbashi (DRC).Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional study of 5341 adolescents aged 10-19 years, 2858 (53.5%) girls and 2483 (46.5%) boys. Weight and height were measured for each adolescent and then body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Results: the average weight was 43,78 +/- 11.62 kg (42,39 +/- 12.11 kg for boys and 44.95 +/- 11.04 kg for girls), the average height was 151,30 +/- 13,09 cm (151.20 +/- 14.64 cm for boys and 151,38 +/- 11.58 cm for girls) and BMI was 18,82 +/- 3.15 kg/m(2) (19.39 +/- 3.39 kg/m(2) for boys and 18.17 +/- 2.71 kg/m(2) for girls). The prevalence of overweight was 8% while that of obesity was 1%. The girls were significantly more affected by overweight (10.7% girls against 5% boys) and obesity (1.5% girls against 0.4% boys) than the boys. Conclusion: overweight and obesity in school environment are a reality in Lubumbashi. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in this age group category should be determined in a national evaluation plan in order to implement preventive and therapeutic strategies.