Double Burden of Malnutrition in the Asia-Pacific Region—A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Wen Peng; Yuhan Mu; Yang Hu; Bin Li; Jayanthi Raman; Zhixian Sui

doi:10.2991/jegh.k.191117.002

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Volume 10, Issue 1, March 2020, Pages 16 - 27

Double Burden of Malnutrition in the Asia-Pacific Region—A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Authors

Wen Peng¹, Yuhan Mu¹, Yang Hu¹, Bin Li¹, Jayanthi Raman², Zhixian Sui³^{, 4}^{, *}

¹Department of Public Health, Medical School, Qinghai University, Qinghai, China

²Clinical Psychology, Australian College of Applied Psychology, Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

³School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW 2052, Australia

⁴The BMI Clinic, Double Bay, NSW 2028, Australia

^*Corresponding author. Email: zhixian.sui@health.nsw.gov.au

Corresponding Author

Zhixian Sui

Received 7 May 2019, Accepted 27 October 2019, Available Online 4 December 2019.

DOI: 10.2991/jegh.k.191117.002 How to use a DOI?
Keywords: Double burden; Asia-Pacific; malnutrition; undernutrition; overnutrition
Abstract: Background: Double Burden of Malnutrition (DBM)—the coexistence of undernutrition along with overnutrition—is a significant public health issue in the Asia-Pacific region. The scope of the DBM in this region is largely unknown. This review aims to determine the prevalence of under- and overnutrition as major DBM components and to investigate whether there has been a shift from under- to overnutrition in the Asia-Pacific region.

Methods: Online databases including PubMed and Web of Science were searched for original studies on DBM prevalence in the Asia-Pacific region; particularly, those published from January 2008 to December 2018 were screened for eligibility. We collected data on indicators of under- and overnutrition on the population level and adapted the ratio of prevalence of overweight/obesity versus prevalence of underweight as the main outcome indicator. Pooled prevalence estimates of DBM and the ratio of overnutrition versus undernutrition were generated using R (3.4.0).

Results: In total, 33 studies were included in this review. Pooled analysis demonstrated that DBM was generally presented among countries/areas in the Asia-Pacific region except in high-income countries (HICs). Overall, the prevalence of undernutrition was 8.8% (95% CI 7.3–10.6%) while overnutrition among the same population reached 23.0% (95% CI 20.3–26.0%). Countries in the Oceania region or HICs reported low level of undernutrition (less than 3%). All subgroup analysis (geolocation, income level, sex, age) reported pooled prevalence of overweight/obesity as more than 18%. Overall, the whole region and all subgroups were more likely to experience a higher prevalence of overnutrition than undernutrition, except that low- and lower-middle-income countries (L-MICs) had similar prevalence for over- and undernutrition.

Conclusion: DBM in the Asia-Pacific region is alarmingly high and is titled toward overnutrition. As a result, future interventions/policy targeting to maintain a healthy weight for the population should not just focus on prevention and treatment toward one direction.
Open Access: This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

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Journal: Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume-Issue: 10 - 1
Pages: 16 - 27
Publication Date: 2019/12/04
ISSN (Online): 2210-6014
ISSN (Print): 2210-6006
DOI: 10.2991/jegh.k.191117.002 How to use a DOI?
Open Access: This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

Cite this article

ris enw bib

TY  - JOUR
AU  - Wen Peng
AU  - Yuhan Mu
AU  - Yang Hu
AU  - Bin Li
AU  - Jayanthi Raman
AU  - Zhixian Sui
PY  - 2019
DA  - 2019/12/04
TI  - Double Burden of Malnutrition in the Asia-Pacific Region—A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
JO  - Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
SP  - 16
EP  - 27
VL  - 10
IS  - 1
SN  - 2210-6014
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/jegh.k.191117.002
DO  - 10.2991/jegh.k.191117.002
ID  - Peng2019
ER  -

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