Influence of sociodemographic variables and healthy habits on the values of overweight and obesity scales in 386,924 Spanish workers

Introduction: Obesity is a highly prevalent chronic and multifactorial disease that is generally associated with an increased cardiometabolic risk. Objective: In this study we are interested in assessing the effect of different sociodemographic variables and healthy habits on the values of different scales that assess overweight and obesity. Methodology: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out in 386,924 Spanish workers to assess the effect of different sociodemographic variables (age, sex, social class, level of education) and healthy habits (physical activity, Mediterranean diet and tobacco consumption) on the values of scales that determine overweight and obesity on the basis of different criteria. Results: All the variables analyzed increased the risk of presenting obesity with any of the criteria except educational level. The most influential variables were physical activity and Mediterranean diet. Conclusions: The risk profile of presenting obesity corresponds to that of an elderly male, with a low socioeconomic level, sedentary, with low adherence to the Mediterranean diet and a smoker.