Direct and Indirect Determinants of Body Mass Index in Both Major Ethnic Groups Experiencing the Nutritional Transition in Cameroon

Emmanuel Cohen, Norbert Amougou, Amandine Ponty, Margaux Guerrien, Wakilongo Wakenge, Glory Chidumwa, Rihlat Said-Mohamed, Léopold K. Fezeu and Patrick Pasquet
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Emmanuel Cohen: UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie (EA), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Université de Paris, Musée de l’Homme, 17 Place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France
Norbert Amougou: UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie (EA), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Université de Paris, Musée de l’Homme, 17 Place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France
Amandine Ponty: UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie (EA), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Université de Paris, Musée de l’Homme, 17 Place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France
Margaux Guerrien: UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie (EA), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Université de Paris, Musée de l’Homme, 17 Place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France
Wakilongo Wakenge: UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie (EA), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Université de Paris, Musée de l’Homme, 17 Place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France
Glory Chidumwa: SAMRC/WITS Developmental Pathways for Health Research Unit, Department of Paediatrics, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, 7 York Road, Parktown, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa
Rihlat Said-Mohamed: SAMRC/WITS Developmental Pathways for Health Research Unit, Department of Paediatrics, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, 7 York Road, Parktown, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa
Léopold K. Fezeu: Sorbonne Paris Cité, Epidemiology and Statistics Research Center (CRESS), Inserm U1153, Inra U1125, Cnam, University of Paris 13, Nutritional Epidemiology Research Team (EREN), 93017 Bobigny, France
Patrick Pasquet: UMR7206 Eco-Anthropologie (EA), Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, Université de Paris, Musée de l’Homme, 17 Place du Trocadéro, 75016 Paris, France

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 10, 1-17

Abstract: In the context of rapid nutritional transitions in Africa, few studies have analyzed the etiology of obesity by considering the driver pathways that predict body mass index (BMI). The aim of this study is to innovatively identify these driver pathways, including the main sociodemographic and socioecological drivers of BMI. We conducted a rural–urban quantitative study in Cameroon ( n = 1106; balanced sex ratio) to explore this issue. We recruited participants and reported several sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., marital status, socioeconomic status (SES), and ethnicity). We then assessed three main socioecological drivers of BMI (body weight perception, dietary intake, and physical activity) and conducted bioanthropometric measurements. We identified several driver pathways predicting BMI. In Cameroon, Bamiléké ethnicity, higher SES, being married, and older age had positive effects on BMI through overweight valorization and/or dietary intake. Accordingly, we found that being Bamiléké, married, and middle-aged, as well as having a higher SES, were factors that constituted at-risk subgroups overexposed to drivers of obesity. As such, this study highlights the necessity of investigating the complex driver pathways that lead to obesity. Therefore, better identification of the subgroups at risk for obesity will help in developing more targeted population health policies in countries where this burden is a major public health issue.

Keywords: determinants; driver pathways; BMI; nutritional transition; Cameroon (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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