Socioeconomic Disparities in the Prevalence of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Ghanaian Women

Jeffrey Boakye; Danielle Mensah; Swati Sakhuja; Pauline E. Jolly; Tomi Akinyemiju

doi:10.1016/j.aogh.2017.05.004

Annals of Global Health (Aug 2017)

Socioeconomic Disparities in the Prevalence of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Ghanaian Women

Jeffrey Boakye,
Danielle Mensah,
Swati Sakhuja,
Pauline E. Jolly,
Tomi Akinyemiju

Affiliations

Jeffrey Boakye: Department of Biology, Philander Smith College, Little Rock, AR; Systemic Autoimmunity Branch, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD; Minority Health International Research Training Program, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Danielle Mensah: Minority Health International Research Training Program, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL
Swati Sakhuja: Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Pauline E. Jolly: Minority Health International Research Training Program, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
Tomi Akinyemiju: Department of Epidemiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL; Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aogh.2017.05.004
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 83, no. 3-4
pp. 423 – 431

Abstract

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Background: Recent trends toward urbanization in developing countries like Ghana, coupled with nutritional transition and aging populations, have led to a rapid increase in the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between socioeconomic status and cardiometabolic risk factors among women in Ghana. Methods: Data for this analysis were obtained from Wave 1 of the Ghana Study of Global Aging and Health, conducted in 2007, and included women 18 years and older. Survey weighted descriptive and multivariable linear regression models were used to examine the association between socioeconomic status and cardiometabolic risk factors. Results: Among a total of 1988 women, 48% ages 40-64 years, almost half were overweight or obese (47%) and 21% had current hypertension, whereas only 4.3% and 2% of women self-reported a history of hypertension and diabetes, respectively. Multivariable adjusted analysis indicated that women with a high school education had 2-fold increased odds of being overweight or obese compared with those with no formal education (odds ratio [OR]: 2.02, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.20-3.42). Women employed in the public sector had almost a 5 times higher odds of being overweight or obese (OR: 4.94, 95% CI: 1.42-17.15), whereas those employed in the private sector or self-employed had reduced odds of diabetes (OR: 0.27, 95% CI: 0.10-0.70) and hypertension (OR: 0.43, 95% CI: 0.21-0.86). ConclusionThe prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors varies by socioeconomic status among Ghanaian women. Targeted intervention programs to reduce overweight and obesity may begin among Ghanaian women employed in the public sector, and improved access to health care will be critical for timely diagnosis and management of other disease risk factors.

Published in Annals of Global Health

ISSN: 2214-9996 (Online)
Publisher: Ubiquity Press
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Infectious and parasitic diseases; Medicine: Public aspects of medicine
Website: https://www.annalsofglobalhealth.org/

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