Associations between Health Interest Scale Dimensions and Obesity Risk: A Cross-sectional Study among Japanese Employees

Abstract

Introduction: Obesity affects over 2.5 billion adults globally in 2022, posing a significant public health challenge. In Japan, obesity, defined as a body mass index ≥25 kg/m², impacted 33.0% of men and 22.3% of women in 2020. Despite this, over 25% of Japanese adults report no intention to improve health habits.

The Health Interest Scale (HIS) assesses health-related attitudes across three dimensions: health consciousness, health motivation, and health value. Although overall HIS scores are associated with health outcomes, the specific roles of these dimensions in obesity risk are unclear. This study examines the associations between each HIS dimension and obesity risk among Japanese corporate employees, supporting targeted interventions for sedentary, working-age populations.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data from 2,260 employees of information technology-related companies in Japan, collected via health checkups and self-administered surveys in 2023. HIS scores (range: 0-36) were used as continuous variables. Logistic regression assessed associations between HIS subscale scores and obesity status, adjusting for demographic, occupational, and lifestyle factors and obesity-related diseases.

Results: Higher scores on each HIS dimension were associated with lower obesity odds. Adjusted odds ratios per one-point increase were: health consciousness, 0.84 (95% confidence interval: 0.81-0.88); health value, 0.85 (0.81-0.89); and health motivation, 0.91 (0.87-0.95). Male sex, short sleep (<7 hours), and sedentary occupations were associated with increased obesity odds (all p < 0.001). The associations remained significant after adjustment for obesity-related diseases. Additionally, stronger associations were observed among participants with obesity-related diseases in univariate analysis.

Conclusions: This study identified significant associations between the three HIS dimensions and obesity risk, which remained robust after adjusting for obesity-related diseases. Stronger associations were observed across all HIS dimensions in participants with obesity-related diseases. These findings underscore the importance of tailored interventions targeting HIS dimensions, particularly health consciousness and health value, to reduce obesity risk in sedentary, working-age populations.