Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess prevalence and socioeconomic context of overweight and obesity in a cohort of Scottish children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Primary schools in Dundee, Angus, and Fife, Eastern Scotland, UK. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1240 boys and 1214 girls aged between 4-10y. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Weight, height and body mass index (weight/height2). RESULTS: Overall overweight or obesity prevalence was 24.6%, while prevalence of obesity alone was 6.1%. Individuals from schools with a high level of low-income families were 65% more likely to be overweight as judged by BMI. However, these children weighed the same as more affluent children of the same age, but were 1.26 cm shorter. CONCLUSION: These data confirm the continued increase in childhood obesity in the UK and reveal a role for height-growth limitation in the absence of overall growth restriction, among children from low-income groups. This observation raises important questions regarding socioeconomic environmental factors in promoting the currently increasing levels of obesity.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1199-1203 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | International Journal of Obesity |
Volume | 29 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 12 Sept 2005 |
Keywords
- Childhood obesity
- Growth
- Height
- Socioeconomic status
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine (miscellaneous)
- Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism
- Nutrition and Dietetics