Table 2. Percentage of BMI categories within school location.
| Variables | Rural (n = 1846) | Urban (n = 1942) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thin (n = 175) |
Normal (n = 1130) | Overweight (n = 290) | Obese (n = 251) |
P-valuea (x2) | Thin (n = 188) |
Normal (n = 1175) | Overweight (n = 303) | Obese (n = 286) |
P-valueb (x2) | |
| Gender | ||||||||||
| Male | 14.0 | 52.3 | 15.9 | 17.9 | <0.001 (34.43) |
8.1 | 59.4 | 15.0 | 17.5 | <0.001 (18.61) |
| Female | 8.5 | 66.7 | 13.4 | 11.5 | 9.1 | 62.3 | 17.3 | 11.4 | ||
| Household size [15] | ||||||||||
| Small | 10.8 | 56.8 | 15.3 | 17.0 | 0.168 (9.11) |
6.9 | 56.8 | 19.6 | 16.7 | 0.039 (13.27) |
| Medium | 11.3 | 56.9 | 16.3 | 15.5 | 7.8 | 60.6 | 16.6 | 15.0 | ||
| Large | 11.1 | 63.8 | 12.8 | 12.3 | 10.1 | 62.5 | 15.3 | 12.1 | ||
| Mother’s occupational level [13] | ||||||||||
| Fourth | 9.8 | 50.6 | 18.9 | 20.7 | 0.1 (14.68) |
7.4 | 53.8 | 20.9 | 17.9 | 0.015 (20.46) |
| Third | 9.5 | 66.7 | 4.8 | 19.0 | 11.1 | 58.3 | 15.3 | 15.3 | ||
| Second | 12.9 | 56.0 | 13.8 | 17.2 | 9.4 | 57.5 | 18.9 | 14.2 | ||
| First | 11.0 | 61.7 | 14.2 | 13.1 | 8.8 | 63.4 | 14.9 | 13.0 | ||
| Father’s occupational level [13] | ||||||||||
| Fourth | 7.9 | 51.8 | 20.1 | 20.1 | 0.058 (16.45) |
7.5 | 49.6 | 22.4 | 20.5 | <0.001 (46.89) |
| Third | 14.5 | 52.7 | 20.0 | 12.7 | 11.4 | 55.1 | 14.2 | 19.3 | ||
| Second | 11.4 | 63.7 | 13.2 | 11.7 | 8.5 | 66.1 | 15.4 | 9.9 | ||
| First | 12.4 | 60.5 | 13.2 | 14.0 | 8.6 | 63.3 | 14.9 | 13.2 | ||
| Mother’s education level | ||||||||||
| No formal education | 10.3 | 72.4 | 3.4 | 13.8 | 0.134 (13.68) |
8.8 | 58.8 | 17.6 | 14.7 | 0.011 (21.35) |
| Primary education | 11.7 | 62.6 | 15.6 | 10.1 | 8.9 | 58.2 | 20.9 | 12.0 | ||
| Secondary education | 11.0 | 60.4 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 8.7 | 63.2 | 15.0 | 13.1 | ||
| Tertiary education | 9.8 | 51.5 | 16.7 | 22.0 | 8.5 | 52.5 | 21.5 | 17.5 | ||
| Father’s education level | ||||||||||
| No formal education | 17.4 | 63.0 | 8.7 | 10.9 | 0.185 (12.53) |
17.4 | 63.0 | 8.7 | 10.9 | <0.001 (34.12) |
| Primary education | 8.1 | 67.0 | 15.8 | 9.1 | 8.1 | 67.0 | 15.8 | 9.1 | ||
| Secondary education | 11.8 | 58.6 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 11.8 | 58.6 | 14.5 | 15.1 | ||
| Tertiary education | 10.2 | 57.8 | 17.2 | 14.8 | 10.2 | 57.8 | 17.2 | 14.8 | ||
| Household income level [14] | 0.011 (16.55) |
<0.001 (37.34) |
||||||||
| Low | 11.0 | 62.3 | 15.1 | 11.6 | 8.9 | 63.3 | 16.2 | 11.5 | ||
| Middle | 8.6 | 53.6 | 15.0 | 22.9 | 6.7 | 58.4 | 17.2 | 17.7 | ||
| High | 10.3 | 53.8 | 15.4 | 20.5 | 8.1 | 47.7 | 22.8 | 21.5 | ||
| SES level [9] | ||||||||||
| Low | 12.8 | 62.0 | 13.0 | 12.2 | 0.044 (12.96) |
7.4 | 67.1 | 15.0 | 10.5 | <0.001 (40.55) |
| Medium | 9.7 | 60.5 | 15.0 | 14.8 | 9.6 | 61.4 | 16.1 | 12.9 | ||
| High | 10.8 | 51.3 | 17.1 | 20.9 | 8.4 | 50.9 | 19.5 | 21.1 | ||
aBMI categories versus genders, parental occupation level, parental education level, SES level, household income level, household size within rural area (Pearson’s chi-square test)
bBMI categories versus genders, parental occupation level, parental education level, SES level, household income level, household size within urban area (Pearson’s chi-square test) Parental occupation classified based on MASCO 2008 (1st level: Elementary jobs, 2nd: Administrative & operational jobs, 3rd level: Technician job, 4th level: Professional jobs; SES level classified based on Boey et al. (2003); Household income level (Low: <MYR 2300, Middle: MYR 2300–5599, High: >MYR5600); Household size (Small: <5 persons, Medium: 5–7 persons, Large: >7 persons)