TABLE 1 .
Characteristics of the Study Population (n = 236) Aged 20–54 Years, Delhi, 2003
| Characteristics | Percent | Number of women |
|---|---|---|
| Current body mass index1 | ||
| Overweight (BMI 25.0–29.99 kg/m2) | 43.6 | 103 |
| Obese (BMI 30.0–34.99 kg/m2) | 39.4 | 93 |
| Morbidly obese (BMI ≥35.0 kg/m2) | 16.9 | 40 |
| Current age (years) | ||
| 20–34 | 33.1 | 78 |
| 35–54 | 66.9 | 158 |
| Mean age (years) | 41.2 | 236 |
| Education2 | ||
| Illiterate | 13.6 | 32 |
| Literate, < middle school complete | 15.3 | 36 |
| Middle school complete | 13.6 | 32 |
| High school complete and above | 57.6 | 136 |
| Religion | ||
| Hindu | 79.7 | 188 |
| Muslim | 8.5 | 20 |
| Sikh or others3 | 11.9 | 28 |
| Caste/tribe status4 | ||
| Scheduled caste/tribes | 8.1 | 19 |
| Other class | 8.1 | 19 |
| Others | 83.9 | 198 |
| Standard of living index5 | ||
| Low/medium | 13.5 | 31 |
| High | 86.5 | 199 |
| Employment status | ||
| Not working | 92.3 | 217 |
| Working | 7.7 | 18 |
| Media exposure | ||
| Never reads newspapers | 53.4 | 126 |
| Reads newspapers occasionally | 11.0 | 26 |
| Reads newspapers daily | 35.6 | 84 |
| Total | 100.0 | 236 |
1Women who were pregnant at the time of the survey, or who had given birth during the 2 months preceding the survey, were excluded from these anthropometric measurements.
2Illiterate–-0 years of education; literate but less than middle school complete–-1–5 years of education, middle school complete–-6–8 years of education, high school complete or more–-9+ years of education.
3Buddhist, Christian, Jain, Jewish, or Zoroastrian.
4Scheduled castes and Scheduled tribes are identified by the Government of India as socially and economically backward and needing protection from social injustice and exploitation. Other class category is a diverse collection of intermediate castes that were considered low in the traditional caste hierarchy but are clearly above SC. Others’ is a default residual group that enjoys higher status in the caste hierarchy.
5Standard of living (SLI) was defined in terms of household assets and material possessions and these have been shown to be reliable and valid measures of household material well-being (Filmer and Pritchett 2001). It is an index (International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) and ORC Macro 2000), which is based on ownership of a number of different consumer durables and other household items. It is calculated by adding the following scores: house type: 4 for pucca, 2 for semi pucca, 0 for kachha; toilet facility: 4 for own flush toilet, 2 for public or shared flush toilet or own pit toilet, 1 for shared or public pit toilet, 0 for no facility; source of lighting: 2 for electricity, 1 for kerosene, gas, or oil, 0 for other source of lighting; main fuel for cooking: 2 for electricity, liquefied natural gas, or biogas, 1 for coal, charcoal, or kerosene, 0 for other fuel; source of drinking water: 2 for pipe, hand pump, or well in residence/yard/plot, 1 for public tap, hand pump, or well, 0 for other water source; separate room for cooking: 1 for yes, 0 for no; ownership of house: 2 for yes, 0 for no; ownership of agricultural land: 4 for 5 acres or more, 3 for 2.0–4.9 acres, 2 for less than 2 acres or acreage not known, 0 for no agricultural land; ownership of irrigated land: 2 if household owns at least some irrigated land, 0 for no irrigated land; ownership of livestock: 2 if own livestock, 0 if do not own livestock; durable goods ownership: 4 for a car or tractor, 3 each for a moped/scooter/motorcycle, telephone, refrigerator, or color television, 2 each for a bicycle, electric fan, radio/transistor, sewing machine, black and white television, water pump, bullock cart, or thresher, 1 each for a mattress, pressure cooker, chair, cot/bed, table, or clock/watch. Index scores range from 0–14 for low SLI to 15–24 for medium SLI to 25–67 for high SLI.