Obesity and Body Fat Percentage in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Background Obesity is a disease of global concerns, impacting different organ systems with lethal efficacy. Obesity is defined as having a body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or above. In our Kingdom, obesity is reaching new heights, for almost a third of our population is obese. We aim to shed light on this issue and evaluate the possible risk factors for this disease. Methodology This was a cross-sectional study in which we collected data from mall goers in two different malls in Riyadh. We used booths and checkpoints to encourage subjects to participate in our campaign. We employed a validated questionnaire and equipment to gather the required data. Results We compiled data from a total of 317 subjects with a slight male predominance. We found significant relation between Body Fat Percentage (BFP) and BMI (p = 0.002). We found significant relation between BFP and age (p = less than 0.000) with the same result appearing in BFP and gender ( p = less than 0.000).44 % of females screened positive for self-reported depression. We found no relation between BFP and blood pressure.