Diet and Physical Activity among Women in Urban and Rural Areas in South India – A Community Based Comparative Survey

Introduction: Non communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and heart diseases are increasing in India. There is a clear need to study risk factors for NCD's in various population groups in the country.

Methods: This community based cross sectional survey was conducted to study the diet and physical activity of women in urban and rural areas in Vellore district. Dietary data was collected using 24 hour dietary recall and physical activity was collected using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Socio demographic variables were collected to assess the risk factors for unfavorable diet and physical activity.

Results: The odds of the rural women engaging in high physical activity are 3.61 times greater than urban women (95% CI 2.36-5.54). The mean duration spent on watching television was 222.84 minutes (SD 125.14 mins) during week days and 203.92 minutes (SD 109.32 mins) during weekends. The mean calorie intake was 1755 Kcal (SD 491.58 Kcal). The odds of the rural women consuming a high calorie diet are 0.52 times that of the urban women. (95% CI 0.35-0.78). The odds of the rural women being overweight/obese are 0.18 times than that of the urban women (95% CI =0.10-0.30). Women who were housewives and not doing household work were significantly less physically active, took higher calorie diet and were more overweight and obese compared to women who were involved in active household work.

Conclusions: Urban women had unfavorable diet and physical activity levels compared to rural women. They also had higher levels of overweight and obesity. There is a need for targeted NCD prevention interventions among urban women.