Prevalence of Selected Chronic, Noncommunicable Disease Risk Factors in Jordan: Results of the 2007 Jordan Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey

INTRODUCTION: Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of illness and death in Jordan. Since 2002, the Jordan Ministry of Health, in cooperation with the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, established the Jordan Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey to collect information on many of the behaviors and conditions related to NCDs. The objectives of this study were to describe the prevalence of selected NCD risk factors and the relationship between body mass index and selected health conditions among a nationally representative sample of Jordanian adults aged 18 years or older. METHODS: We used a multistage sampling design to select 3,688 households, from which we randomly selected and interviewed 1 adult aged 18 years or older. A total of 3,654 adults completed the survey. We randomly selected a subsample of 889 interviewed adults and invited them to visit local health clinics for a medical evaluation; we obtained measurements, including fasting blood glucose and blood lipids, from 765 adults. Data were collected between June 1, 2007, and August 23, 2007. RESULTS: Nearly one-third of participants smoked cigarettes, 18% reported having been diagnosed with high blood pressure, and 10% reported frequent mental distress. Compared with survey participants who did not participate in the medical evaluation, those who participated were more likely to self-report high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and diabetes and report lower levels of health-related quality of life. Among participants of the medical evaluation, an estimated 11% reported they had been diagnosed with diabetes by a health professional, and 19% were diagnosed with diabetes according to laboratory testing. Approximately one-third of participants of the medical evaluation were either overweight (30%) or obese (36%). In the fully adjusted model, obese participants of the medical evaluation were nearly 3 times as likely to have high blood pressure and more than 2 times as likely to have high blood cholesterol as normal-weight participants. CONCLUSION: Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity are a public health concern in Jordan. Adequate and continuous monitoring of NCD risk factors in Jordan is needed, and the surveillance findings should be used in health promotion and disease prevention activities.