Diet and Obesity
Epidemiology
Obesity, type 2 diabetes and hypertension are all on the rise in sub-Saharan Africa. Dr Chikwati, from the Wits Health Consortium (South Africa), is investigating possible factors leading to these conditions, and comparing results with populations of European ancestry.
Previously, Dr Chikwati has examined the prevalence of obesity, type 2 diabetes and hypertension in 12,000 adults in four sub-Saharan African populations. This study, named ‘AWI-Gen’, formed part of Dr Chikwati’s PhD thesis, and highlighted the lack of adequate health services in sub-Saharan Africa to treat these conditions. Identifying and understanding what causes these conditions is therefore even more essential in this region, to improve public health outcomes.
Mendelian Randomization (MR) is an epidemiological method that uses genetic information to identify disease-causing factors. However, in sub-Saharan Africa, there is limited expertise on the use of this technique. Dr Chikwati is therefore collaborating with Professor Deborah Lawlor and colleagues at the University of Bristol to develop his skills in genetic epidemiology and MR. He will be attending a short-course in MR, and researching the causal relationship of obesity with type 2 diabetes and hypertension using data from the AWI-Gen study.
This joint effort will help to deepen our understanding of these urgent health issues. The researchers hope to develop a mutually beneficial collaboration, to enhance genetic epidemiology in this region, but also to reduce global inequalities in this field overall.