Objective: To report on the prevalence of overweight and obesity among preschool children in Kenya and examine the associations between childhood overweight and selected maternal and child-related factors.
Design: Demographic Health Survey data, multistage stratified cluster sampling methodology.
Setting: Rural and urban areas of Kenya.
Subjects: A total of 1495 children between the ages of 3 and 5 years in Kenya.
Results: Over 30% of the children were stunted, approximately 16% were underweight, 4% were wasted, approximately 18% were overweight and 4% were obese; 8% were both overweight/obese and stunted. Maternal overweight and obesity, higher levels of maternal education, being a large or very large child at birth, and being stunted were each associated with higher odds of overweight and obesity among Kenyan children. Older children and large household size were each associated with lower odds of overweight and obesity among Kenyan children.
Conclusions: The analysis demonstrates the presence of under- and overnutrition among Kenyan pre-school children and the importance of focusing on expanding efforts to prevent and treat malnutrition within this population. It also identifies some of the modifiable factors that can be targeted in these efforts.