Prevalence of risk factors for noncommunicable diseases in an indigenous community in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala.

Objective: To describe the prevalence of noncommunicable disease (NCD) risk factors and assess knowledge of those risk factors in the indigenous community of Santiago Atitlán in Guatemala, a lower-middle income country.

Methods: A population-based, cross-sectional study was conducted using a modified version of the World Health Organization's STEPS protocol. Adults aged 20-65 years were surveyed regarding demographics and NCD risk factors, and the survey was followed by anthropometric and biochemical measurements.

Results: Out of 501 screened individuals, 350 respondents were enrolled. The mean age was 36.7 years, and 72.3% were women. Over 90% reported earning less than US$ 65 per month. Almost 80% were stunted. Among women, 37.3% were obese and over three-quarters had central obesity. Over three-quarters of the entire group had dyslipidemia and 18.3% had hypertension, but only 3.0% had diabetes. Overall, 36.0% of participants met criteria for metabolic syndrome. There was no significant association between participants' education and NCD risk factors except for an inverse association with obesity by percent body fat.

Conclusions: Santiago Atitlán is a rural, indigenous Guatemalan community with high rates of poverty and stunting coexisting alongside high rates of obesity, particularly among women. Additionally, high rates of hypertension and dyslipidemia were found, but a low rate of diabetes mellitus. Knowledge of NCDs and their risk factors was low, suggesting that educational interventions may be a high-yield, low-cost approach to combating NCDs in this community.