Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 21, 2026

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
09:36

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study

Published on: February 2, 2017

Defining overweight in children using growth charts

Cynthia L Ogden1

  • 1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hyattsville, Maryland, USA.

Maryland Medicine : MM : a Publication of MEDCHI, the Maryland State Medical Society
|October 22, 2004
PubMed

Insights

Pediatric overweight is defined differently than adult obesity, using statistical BMI-for-age percentiles based on growth charts. The 2000 CDC growth charts define overweight as the 95th percentile and at-risk for overweight between the 85th and 95th percentiles for children.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Endocrinology
  • Public Health
  • Growth Monitoring

Background:

  • Childhood overweight and adult obesity rates have both risen.
  • Definitions for pediatric overweight and adult obesity differ significantly.
  • Adult obesity uses fixed cutoffs, while pediatric overweight relies on reference populations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To clarify the definitions and screening methods for pediatric overweight in the U.S.
  • To highlight the specific criteria used for identifying overweight and at-risk children.
  • To explain the role of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) growth charts.

Main Methods:

  • Utilizing the 2000 CDC BMI-for-age growth charts for U.S. children and teens (ages 2-19).
  • Applying statistical definitions based on reference populations for BMI.
  • Establishing percentile cutoffs for overweight and at-risk for overweight categories.

Main Results:

  • Overweight in children and teens is defined as a BMI-for-age greater than or equal to the 95th percentile.
  • At-risk for overweight is defined as a BMI-for-age between the 85th and 95th percentiles.
  • The 2000 CDC growth charts serve as a growth reference, not a prescriptive standard.

Conclusions:

  • The 2000 CDC BMI-for-age growth charts are the recommended tool for screening pediatric overweight in the U.S.
  • Clear percentile-based definitions are crucial for consistent identification of overweight and at-risk children.
  • Understanding these definitions is vital for public health initiatives addressing childhood obesity.

More Related Videos

Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts07:56

Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts

Published on: January 29, 2018

Related Concept Videos

Obesity01:24

Obesity

The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a numerical value derived from a person's weight and height, used to categorize individuals into weight ranges. It is calculated using the formula: weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared. Obesity is a health condition characterized by excessive accumulation of adipose tissue that poses health risks, often diagnosed with a BMI ≥ 30. This excess fat storage occurs when surplus dietary calories are converted into triglycerides and stored in adipocytes...
Rate of Change: Problem Solving01:26

Rate of Change: Problem Solving

Temperature-Dependent Growth of Brook TroutThe growth of brook trout is closely influenced by water temperature. Experimental data demonstrate how trout weight changes over a 24-day period in response to varying water temperatures. At lower temperatures, such as 15.5 degrees Celsius, brook trout show significant weight gain. However, as the temperature increases, the amount of weight gained steadily decreases. At the highest temperature measured, 24.4 degrees Celsius, trout experience a net...
Drug Dosing: Infants and Children01:29

Drug Dosing: Infants and Children

Pediatric patient dosages diverge from adults due to disparities in body surface area, total body water, and extracellular fluid per kilogram of body weight. The dosing regimen considers the variations in pharmacokinetics and pharmacology across distinct age groups, encompassing preterm newborns, infants, young children, older children, and adolescents. Calculation of pediatric patient doses is predicated on determining body surface area, which exhibits a superior correlation with the child's...
Variation: Normal Distribution, Range, and Standard Deviation02:32

Variation: Normal Distribution, Range, and Standard Deviation

In the field of psychology, there are several ways to organize measurements of a trait, feature, or characteristic (i.e., variables). Qualitative data, such as ethnicity, can be tabulated into a frequency count to provide information about the proportion, as well as the variety of groups in a sample or population. On the other hand, researchers can perform a wider set of calculations on quantitative data. The mean, mode, and median, for instance, are central tendency measures to identify a...
Oxygen Requirements and Growth Patterns01:29

Oxygen Requirements and Growth Patterns

Microorganisms exhibit diverse oxygen requirements and growth patterns driven by their metabolic strategies and environmental adaptations. Oxygen, while essential for many organisms, can also be toxic under certain conditions, shaping how microorganisms grow and survive.Oxygen Requirements of MicroorganismsMicroorganisms are classified based on their ability to use or tolerate oxygen:● Obligate aerobes like Mycobacterium tuberculosis need oxygen for energy production, as it serves as the...
Nature and Nurture01:10

Nature and Nurture

Many human characteristics, like height, are shaped by both nature—in other words, by our genes—and by nurture, or our environment. For example, chronic stress during childhood inhibits the production of growth hormones and consequently reduces bone growth and height. Scientists estimate that 70-90% of variation in height is due to genetic differences among individuals, and 10-30% of variation in height is due to differences in the environments that individuals experience, such as differences...