Abstract
To assess the trend associations between South Africa’s economic growth using
various economic growth indicators (EGIs) with adult obesity prevalence over a specified
period of time.
Methods: Data for obesity levels reported was obtained from national surveys conducted in
South African adults between the periods of 1994 to 2014. EGIs incorporated in the current
analysis were obtained from the World Bank and IHS Global insight databases. Obesity
prevalence is presented by gender, urbanisation level and ethnicity. EGIs congruent to the
time points where obesity data are available are presented. Unadjusted time trend plots were
applied to assess associations between obesity prevalence and EGIs by gender, urbanisation
level and ethnicity.
Results: Females present higher levels of obesity relative to males for all time points. For both
males and females, an overall increase in prevalence was observed in both rural and urban
settings over‐time, with urban dwellers presenting higher obesity levels. An overall increase
in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita and Household Final Consumption Expenditure
(HFCE) per capita was observed. The Gini coefficient for all ethnicities except the white group
increased between 1998 and 2003 but declined by 2012.