Gender-specific, age-standardised prevalences for three anthropometric measures of excess adiposity in five Scottish Health Surveys 1995, 1998, 2003, 2008 and 2009 stratified by highest educational qualification achieved
| Men | Women | |||||||||||
| Proportion (%) (95% CI) | Trend (p value) | Proportion (%) (95% CI) | Trend (p value) | |||||||||
| 1995 | 1998 | 2003 | 2008 | 2009 | 1995 | 1998 | 2003 | 2008 | 2009 | |||
| Obesity, BMI* | ||||||||||||
| All | 19.2 (17.8 to 20.7) | 21.7 (20.2 to 23.2) | 24.9 (23.1 to 26.7) | 28.3 (26.3 to 30.3) | 29.8 (27.9 to 31.7) | 0.7 (<0.001) | 19.5 (18.1 to 20.9) | 23.8 (22.2 to 25.3) | 25.5 (23.8 to 27.3) | 27.5 (25.5 to 29.5) | 28.2 (26.3 to 30.2) | 0.6 (<0.001) |
| Level 3 | 14.8 (11.7 to 17.9) | 17.2 (14.1 to 20.2) | 20.2 (17.1 to 23.3) | 24.8 (21.2 to 28.5) | 24.2 (20.8 to 27.6) | 0.7 (<0.001) | 16.2 (13.9 to 18.5) | 19.1 (16.5 to 21.6) | 20.2 (17.1 to 23.4) | 20.5 (17.1 to 23.9) | 22.0 (18.9 to 25.2) | 0.3 (0.03) |
| Level 2 | 17.4 (14.2 to 20.6) | 23.4 (20.1 to 26.7) | 28.3 (23.7 to 32.9) | 26.8 (22.9 to 30.8) | 31.1 (27.3 to 34.8) | 0.8 (0.04) | 14.7 (9.7 to 19.6) | 19.3 (13.8 to 24.8) | 25.2 (21.0 to 29.5) | 27.3 (23.1 to 31.5) | 27.8 (24.0 to 31.5) | 0.9 (0.006) |
| Level 1 | 20.6 (18.0 to 23.1) | 22.2 (19.4 to 25.0) | 24.5 (21.3 to 27.8) | 31.7 (27.7 to 35.7) | 31.1 (27.3 to 34.9) | 0.8 (0.005) | 19.8 (16.7 to 23.0) | 25.5 (22.0 to 28.9) | 28.3 (24.9 to 31.6) | 35.4 (31.4 to 39.4) | 32.1 (28.2 to 36.1) | 0.9 (0.01) |
| No qualifications | 23.2 (20.1 to 26.2) | 25.3 (21.8 to 28.7) | 26.6 (22.1 to 31.0) | 36.9 (29.9 to 44.0) | 34.6 (28.1 to 41.1) | 0.9 (0.02) | 22.7 (20.2 to 25.3) | 27.8 (24.7 to 30.8) | 30.9 (26.1 to 35.8) | 26.6 (19.7 to 33.5) | 34.9 (27.5 to 42.3) | 0.5 (0.18) |
| SII (p value) | 10.6 (0.003) | 8.3 (0.18) | 6.8 (0.37) | 15.0 (0.03) | 12.4 (0.08) | 0.3 (0.33) | 10.4 (0.06) | 13.5 (0.04) | 14.2 (0.01) | 13.9 (0.32) | 17.4 (0.004) | 0.3 (0.08) |
| Men | Women | |||||||||
| Proportion (%) (95% CI) | Trend (p value) | Proportion (%) (95% CI) | Trend (p value) | |||||||
| 1995 | 1998 | 2003 | 2008/2009§ | 1995 | 1998 | 2003 | 2008/2009§ | |||
| Excessive WC† | ||||||||||
| All | 17.7 (16.3 to 19.1) | 21.2 (19.7 to 22.7) | 29.5 (27.4 to 31.6) | 32.5 (29.2 to 35.8) | 1.1 (0.02) | 22.3 (20.8 to 23.9) | 28.1 (26.4 to 29.8) | 36.4 (34.1 to 38.6) | 44.3 (40.8 to 47.8) | 1.6 (0.002) |
| Level 3 | 11.7 (8.7 to 14.7) | 18.0 (14.8 to 21.2) | 24.6 (20.9 to 28.3) | 26.9 (21.2 to 32.5) | 1.1 (0.04) | 18.4 (15.9 to 20.9) | 20.3 (17.6 to 23.1) | 30.6 (26.5 to 34.6) | 39.3 (33.0 to 45.6) | 1.6 (0.008) |
| Level 2 | 14.6 (11.5 to 17.8) | 21.0 (17.7 to 24.3) | 30.1 (24.7 to 35.4) | 34.4 (27.8 to 40.9) | 1.5 (0.02) | 17.2 (11.0 to 23.5) | 28.8 (22.6 to 34.9) | 32.8 (27.7 to 38.0) | 46.6 (39.9 to 53.2) | 2.0 (0.03) |
| Level 1 | 18.7 (16.2 to 21.2) | 20.7 (17.9 to 23.5) | 29.5 (25.6 to 33.3) | 36.2 (30.1 to 42.4) | 1.4 (0.007) | 21.3 (17.9 to 24.6) | 30.7 (26.9 to 34.5) | 39.9 (35.7 to 44.2) | 43.6 (36.8 to 50.5) | 1.6 (0.04) |
| No qualifications | 22.7 (19.6 to 25.7) | 25.6 (22.0 to 29.2) | 35.0 (29.5 to 40.6) | 40.0 (30.2 to 49.7) | 1.4 (0.01) | 27.9 (25.0 to 30.8) | 33.0 (29.6 to 36.3) | 46.6 (40.4 to 52.8) | 52.6 (43.5 to 61.6) | 1.9 (0.02) |
| SII (p value) | 14.0 (<0.001) | 8.3 (0.11) | 12.0 (0.08) | 16.6 (0.03) | 0.3 (0.46) | 14.4 (0.06) | 18.0 (0.05) | 21.6 (0.02) | 14.1 (0.16) | 0.0 (0.99) |
| Excessive waist–hip ratio‡ | ||||||||||
| All | 8.2 (7.2 to 9.3) | 8.6 (7.5 to 9.6) | 10.0 (8.6 to 11.4) | 14.5 (12.0 to 16.9) | 0.5 (0.05) | 18.0 (16.6 to 19.4) | 19.2 (17.7 to 20.6) | 34.4 (32.2 to 36.6) | 37.8 (34.4 to 41.2) | 1.6 (0.05) |
| Level 3 | 5.0 (3.0 to 7.0) | 5.0 (3.1 to 6.9) | 5.4 (3.4 to 7.4) | 9.6 (5.1 to 14.0) | 0.3 (0.13) | 14.5 (12.2 to 16.8) | 13.2 (10.9 to 15.5) | 28.1 (24.1 to 32.0) | 30.3 (24.4 to 36.2) | 1.4 (0.08) |
| Level 2 | 6.5 (4.2 to 8.8) | 7.4 (5.1 to 9.6) | 9.3 (6.0 to 12.6) | 18.8 (12.2 to 25.4) | 0.9 (0.07) | 9.6 (4.9 to 14.3) | 17.7 (12.2 to 23.1) | 26.5 (21.6 to 31.4) | 36.0 (29.5 to 42.5) | 1.9 (0.004) |
| Level 1 | 7.5 (5.8 to 9.2) | 9.0 (7.0 to 11.1) | 9.9 (7.4 to 12.5) | 24.2 (17.6 to 30.8) | 1.2 (0.11) | 18.6 (15.4 to 21.9) | 18.2 (14.9 to 21.5) | 36.8 (32.7 to 41.0) | 37.1 (30.5 to 43.7) | 1.6 (0.10) |
| No qualifications | 11.9 (9.6 to 14.3) | 12.3 (9.8 to 14.7) | 14.3 (11.2 to 17.4) | 27.8 (19.6 to 36.1) | 1.2 (0.10) | 23.1 (20.3 to 25.8) | 25.5 (22.5 to 28.5) | 43.8 (38.3 to 49.2) | 56.4 (47.2 to 65.7) | 2.6 (0.01) |
| SII (p value) | 8.4 (0.06) | 8.9 (0.01) | 10.7 (0.03) | 24.4 (0.007) | 1.2 (0.11) | 13.9 (0.14) | 17.3 (0.02) | 22.0 (0.08) | 28.3 (0.13) | 1.1 (<0.001) |
Educational qualification categories = level 3—degree level or above; level 2—intermediate; level 1—statutory school leaving; No qualifications. Thresholds for high risk: *body mass index (BMI) ≥30 kg/m2, †waist circumference (WC) men ≥102 cm, women ≥88 cm and ‡waist–hip ratio men ≥1, women ≥0.85.
↵§ Merged data set.
SII, slope index of inequality.