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Updated: Sep 28, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Body mass index in 7-9-y-old French children: frequency of obesity, overweight and thinness
M-F Rolland-Cachera1, K Castetbon, N Arnault
1Unité de Surveillance et d'Epidémiologie Nutritionnelle, Institut de Veille Sanitaire (InVS)/Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, CNAM, Paris, France. cachera@cnam.fr
Insights
This study found that overweight and obesity are increasing in French children, with thinness also showing an upward trend. Different definitions of nutritional status yield varying prevalence rates, highlighting the need for standardized measurements in pediatric health assessments.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Nutritional Epidemiology
- Public Health
Background:
- Childhood obesity is a growing global concern with significant health implications.
- Accurate assessment of nutritional status in children is crucial for public health interventions.
- Various definitions exist for classifying childhood overweight, obesity, and thinness, leading to potential discrepancies in prevalence data.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the prevalence of different grades of nutritional status (obesity, overweight, thinness) in French children aged 7-9 years.
- To compare prevalence rates using four distinct, current definitions based on body mass index (BMI).
- To establish a baseline for future trend analysis and international comparisons of childhood nutritional status in France.
Main Methods:
- A randomly selected sample of 1582 French children aged 7-9 years participated in the study in 2000.
- Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated for each child (weight/height squared).
- Nutritional status was categorized using four reference systems: French, Must et al., International Obesity Task Force (IOTF), and Center for Disease Control (CDC) 2000.
Main Results:
- Overweight (including obesity) prevalence varied significantly by definition, ranging from 16.3% (French) to 23.9% (Must et al.).
- Obesity prevalence was reported as 9.3% (Must et al.), 3.8% (IOTF), and 6.4% (CDC).
- Thinness prevalence was 3.9% (French), 6.0% (Must et al.), and 6.0% (CDC), with minimal sex-based differences observed.
Conclusions:
- The study indicates an increasing prevalence of overweight in French children compared to previous data, alongside a trend towards increasing thinness.
- Prevalence rates for overweight and obesity in French children in 2000 were comparable to those reported in the USA in the late 1970s and 1980s.
- Findings provide essential baseline data for monitoring nutritional trends and facilitating geographical comparisons within Western Europe.
Objective:
To assess the frequency of different grades of nutritional status (obesity, overweight and thinness) in French children aged 7-9 y using four current definitions based on body mass index (BMI).
Methods:
Data were collected in 2000 in a randomly selected sample of French children following the protocol recommended by the European Childhood Obesity Group (ECOG). After computing the BMI (weight/height squared), four references were used to define grades of nutritional status: (1) the French references to define thinness and overweight (3rd and 97th percentiles respectively); (2) the Must et al references to define thinness, overweight and obesity (5th, 85th and 95th percentiles respectively); (3) the International Obesity Task Force cut-offs to define overweight and obesity; and (4) the Center for Disease Control 2000 references to define thinness, overweight and obesity (5th, 85th and 95th percentiles respectively).
Results:
Age and gender standardized frequencies were estimated in 1582 children. According to the French, Must et al, IOTF and CDC references, overweight (including obesity) affected 16.3, 23.9, 18.1 and 20.6% of children, respectively; obesity affected 9.3, 3.8 and 6.4% of children according to the Must, IOTF and CDC references, respectively. Thinness was present in 3.9, 6.0 and 6.0% of children according to the French, Must and CDC references. Whatever the definition, little difference was observed between sexes. Through age classes, as a rule, overweight and obesity tended to decrease while thinness tended to increase.
Conclusion:
The present study revealed an increasing prevalence of overweight in comparison with previous French data and a trend for increasing prevalence of thinness. The IOTF-based prevalence of overweight (including obesity) in 2000 in France was similar with the prevalence recorded in the late 1980s in the USA and the prevalence of obesity in 2000 in France was similar to the prevalence of obesity in the late 1970s in the USA. Data in France are comparable to those reported in other studies conducted in Western Europe. This study provides baseline information for analysis of time trends and for geographical comparisons.
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