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The Double Burden of Undernutrition and Overnutrition in Developing Countries: an Update

  • The Obesity Epidemic: Causes and Consequences (A Peeters and S Tanamas, Section Editors)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Many developing countries have achieved a remarkable improvement in nutrition status in the past decades. However, the prevalence of undernutrition remains a serious problem. At the same time, the prevalence of obesity is increasing substantially, and in some countries, it has approached that of developed countries. This article provides an update on this double burden of malnutrition (DBMN) in developing nations. One hundred countries (lower, middle-lower, and upper-middle income countries) were selected and analysed, and to support the analysis, a systematic review of current published studies was performed. The results show that DBMN already exists in almost all developing countries and that the DBMN ratio (i.e., overweight/underweight) has increased as income per capita has increased. DBMN may manifest within the community, household, or individual. In addition to common factors, poor nutrition in early childhood is suggested as another important driving factor behind the rising obesity rate in most developing countries. A life-course approach has been proposed to prevent undernutrition and overnutrition and should be integrated into the development of health systems to control double burden in developing countries.

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Acknowledgments

The preliminary search of published studies was supported by Vera Nazhira, Fauzi Ali Amin, Suzana Hasan Basri, and Wardiati Yusuf from the Department of Public Health Nutrition, Faculty of Public Health, University Muhammadiyah Aceh.

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Asnawi Abdullah declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by the author.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biostatistics and Population Health, Faculty of Public Health, University Muhammadiyah Aceh, Jln. Leung Bata, Batoh, Banda Aceh, Indonesia, 23245

    Asnawi Abdullah

  2. Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Malvern East, Australia

    Asnawi Abdullah

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Correspondence to Asnawi Abdullah.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on The Obesity Epidemic: Causes and Consequences

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Abdullah, A. The Double Burden of Undernutrition and Overnutrition in Developing Countries: an Update. Curr Obes Rep 4, 337–349 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13679-015-0170-y

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