Background: The main objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of central obesity and some related factors in the north of Iran (Golestan province) in 2006.

Method: This was a population –based cross-sectional study that comprised 2471 subjects (1250 males and 1221 female), using stratified cluster sampling. Interviewers recorded the data using the multidimensional questionnaire and anthropometric indexes. Waist circumference =102 and =88 cm categorized as central obesity for men and women respectively. SPSS 16.0 software was used for statistical analysis.

Results: The mean and standard deviation of age was 39.2±14.28 years and waist circumference was 87.1±13.7 cm in men and 90.2±15.8 cm in women, respectively. In total, the prevalence of central obesity was 32.01% and it was significantly higher in women (57.2%) than in men (15.8%), in urban area (40.5%) than in rural areas (31.9%) and in uneducated people (52.3%) than in college educated people (19.9) (P=0.001). Logistic regression analysis revealed that central obesity was significantly associated with age, urbanization, parity and illiteracy (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Central obesity was the most serious health problem in the north of Iran and it was more prevalent in women than men. Socio-demographic factors such as younger age (between 15-25 and 25-35 years), urbanization, marital status and illiteracy were associated with central obesity. Further studies are necessary to establish the association between central obesity and racial differences in this area.