Authors: Thomas E. Barnett.
This study is a triphasic exploration of the Oceania region’s disproportionate obesity rates and access to obesityrelated clinical trials. To accomplish this, this study investigated the prevalence of obesity clinical trials compared to the worldwide population proportion, the validation of existing obesity data for this population, and the application of exercise and non-exercise-based clinical trials. No statistically significant relationship was noted between the regional population and obesity clinical trial proportions. Simply, the size of a regional population did not directly influence the number of clinical trials. However, findings did validate that Oceanic populations exhibit higher Body Mass Index (BMI) values compared to the global population, in alignment with previous literature. Onesample t-tests revealed a statistically significant difference (p <.001) difference between mean BMI, obesity rate (BMI >30), and morbid obesity rate (BMI >40) in Oceanic populations compared to worldwide rates. Despite the disproportionate obesity rates in this demographic, a negligible number of clinical trials, especially those including exercise interventions, have been made available to this population. Finally, exercise-based clinical trials were used infrequently worldwide, a rate that was exceptionally low amongst studies conducted in the Oceania region. Of note, emerging literature suggests that Oceanic populations, specifically Polynesians, exhibit a genetic anomaly that increases body mass without necessarily increasing fat mass via allele rs373863828. Thus, while the existing BMI data expresses significantly higher obesity rates, more comprehensive research is needed on this population to understand this demographic’s typical body composition. Otherwise, some areas within the Oceania region continue to exhibit obesity rates exceeding five times that of the world average, yet are rarely provided with obesity clinical trials to mitigate obesity-related disease and comorbidities. These findings suggest a need for more equitable allocation of research resources to address the unique challenges posed by obesity in the Oceanic population.
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