Obesity and Its Related Diseases in China: The Impact of the Nut ...

So far, there have been few studies in the Chinese population. BMI, a simple index based on weight and height, correlates well with body fat, morbidity, and mortality (3), and it is globally used to assess overweight and obesity. WHO recommends defining overweight as BMI ≥ 25 kg/m² (4). However, there is increasing evidence that a single cutoff may not accurately describe disease risk in different populations and for different disease conditions. These findings are briefly reviewed below.

2.1.1 Nutrition Transition in China

The term “nutrition transition” has been used to summarize the rapid global changes occurring in food production, distribution, and intake, in physical activity and their effects on diet-related diseases (5). An understanding of the patterns and sources of these changes will serve as a basis for future interventions at the population level to lead to more healthful transition (1).

Unlike the gradual transition that occurred in the United States and most European countries, the nutrition transition in China is much faster. The conceptual framework of nutrition transition is illustrated in Figure 2.1. In this section, we reviewed three components of the transition in China: urbanization, change in dietary patterns and physical activity, as well as the health consequence of the ongoing transition.

2.1.1.1 Urbanization

In relative terms, urban growth was modest before the industrial revolution. Since then, rapid urban development occurred first in higher-income countries. Now lower-income countries are undergoing an even more rapid transformation into urban society. As a result, less-developed regions’ share of the world urban population has been rising (1).