Table 1.
Operational definitions of the study variables
| Variables | Categories and definitions |
|---|---|
| Dependent variable | |
| Abdominal obesity | - Without abdominal obesity: waist circumference < 90 cm for men or < 80 cm for women; - With abdominal obesity: waist circumference ≥ 90 cm for men or ≥ 80 cm for women [34, 57]. |
| Independent variables | |
| Age group | 50–59, 60–69, 70–79, 80+ years. |
| Education | - No formal education: never having any formal education; - ≤ 6 years: not completed elementary school, completed elementary school; - > 6 years: completed junior high school, high school, academy or university, master degree. |
| Occupation | - Non-physical labour: government worker, non-government worker, self-employed; - No occupation: retired, housewife, not-having a job; - Physical labour: farmer, fishermen, driver, rickshaw driver. |
| Marital status | - Single/widowed: not married, divorced, separated, widowed; - Partnership: married, living together. |
| Residence | Coastal, inland, hilly & mountainous |
| Wealth index | Composite index created using PCA and grouped into quintiles: 1st (poorest), 2nd (poor), 3rd (middle), 4th (rich), 5 th (richest). |
| Smoking | - Non-current smokers: never smokers, ex-smokers - Current smokers: currently smoked daily or non-daily. |
| Self-reported chronic disease | - No: did not report having any chronic disease; - Yes: reported having at least one (≥ 1) of the chronic conditions including: hypertension, diabetes, stroke, cardiovascular disease (CVD), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, and cancer. |
Note: Words in bold in the 2nd column refer to reference categories of each of the variable