Body Mass Index (BMI) status and relevant factors: A cross-sectional study in students of Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2015

Background and aims: Obesity is one of the most important problems of modern society, and body mass index (BMI) is a tool to indicate overweight and obesity in adults. Obesity is directly associated with many non-communicable diseases. So for this reason, it was designed a study to assess overweight and obesity in Kooy dormitory students of Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2015. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 342 students (210 girls and 132 boys) selected by random cluster sampling. Students' height and weight were measured and other data were collected by questionnaire and finally analyzed using SPSS. Results: The average age of girls and boys was 23.27±3.09 and 22.58±5.08, respectively. Findings showed that girls’ average BMI was 21.40±3.32 and boys’ one was 23.6±2.82, with significant difference between sexes (P<0.001). From all students who participated in the study 9.3% were underweight, 73.8% normal, 15.2% overweight and 1.5% obese. Smoking and sleeping hours were correlated positively with BMI, while that of meal frequency was negative. Conclusion: Results indicate that university students would benefit from a nutrition and health promotion program to reduce the likelihood of overweight and obesity among them.