the comparative study of obesity among mothers with different ethnic groups in northern iran

background: to evaluate the prevalence of obesity and some related factors in the villages around gorgan which is a multi-racial and capital city of golestan province, northern iran. methods: this was a cross-sectional study with 2854 women participated. interviewers recorded the data using the question­naire. subjects were weighed on scales and had their height, waist, and hip circumferences. economic status was categorized based on 10 consumer items considered necessary for modern-day life (low >=3, moderate = 4-6 and good= 7-10). three ethnic groups were compared in this study: fars (native), turkman and sistani. this study carried out in rural area of golestan province in 2004. results: body mass index (bmi) in ranges of (25-29.9), (30-39.9) and (>=40) was observed in 28.3%, 15.9% and 0.5% of the subject, respectively. the frequency of bmi over 25 among fars(native), turkman and sistani mothers was 64.3%, 43.4% and 32.9%, respectively and statistical differences was significant ( p < 0.02). in 39.1% of these women, the waist to hip ratio (whr) exceeded 0.8 and the index was higher in turkman women compared with other groups. the frequency of economic status was 34.7%, 50.8% and 55.9%, respectively, without any significant difference. the preva­lence of obesity in literate women was significantly higher than in illiterate women ( p < 0.04). conclusion: obesity is a common health problem among women in the rural areas of gorgan and this abnormality is var­ied among three different ethnic groups in this region.