Unequal distribution of adult obesity across subpopulations in low- and middle-income
countries has been reported, but findings have been mainly from data of women of reproductive age.
While mean body mass index (BMI), overweight and obesity prevalence are commonly used obesity
indicators, incorporation of ever-changing skewed BMI distributions has been a challenge. In this
context, our study aimed to assess differences in magnitude and rates of change in BMI distributions by
sex, age, geographic and socioeconomic factors in Mexico, Colombia, and Peru by modeling entire BMI
distributions. Furthermore, this modeling technique was applied for the prediction of future obesity
indicators