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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Methodological issues in the anthropometric assessment of Hmong children in the United States
1Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts--Boston, Boston, Massachusetts 02125-3393, USA. patrick.clarkin@umb.edu
Insights
Body Mass Index (BMI) may overestimate overweight and obesity in children with short stature. Other measures like triceps skinfold are more accurate for assessing adiposity in stunted populations.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric nutrition
- Anthropometry
- Public health
Background:
- Body Mass Index (BMI) is a common metric for assessing weight status in children.
- Its effectiveness may be limited in populations with short stature, such as certain refugee groups.
- Stunting and overweight/obesity can coexist within the same population.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of BMI in assessing overweight and obesity in Hmong refugee children.
- To compare BMI with other anthropometric measures of adiposity in this population.
- To investigate the relationship between stunting and overweight/obesity in short-statured children.
Main Methods:
- A sample of 79 Hmong refugee children aged 4-11 years was studied.
- Median z scores for height, BMI, and triceps skinfold were calculated.
- Prevalence of overweight/obesity was determined using NHANES 85th percentile for BMI-for-age and compared with triceps skinfold and body fat percentage estimates.
Main Results:
- Median z scores indicated potential stunting (height: -1.04z) alongside a tendency towards overweight/obesity (BMI: +0.53z).
- 41.7% of children were classified as overweight/obese by BMI-for-age.
- BMI overestimated overweight/obesity compared to triceps skinfold and body fat percentage measurements.
- A positive correlation was observed between height z scores and adiposity measures.
Conclusions:
- BMI may overestimate overweight/obesity in short-statured children.
- Using BMI in conjunction with other anthropometric measures is recommended for accurate assessment in stunted populations.
- Both stunting and overweight/obesity are prevalent concerns requiring tailored evaluation strategies.
Abstract:
The effectiveness of the body mass index (BMI; kg/m2) in assessing overweight/obesity may be diminished in populations of short stature. In a sample (n = 79) of Hmong refugee children in the United States, of age 4-11 years, median z scores for height, BMI, and the triceps skinfold were -1.04z, +0.53z, and +0.18z, respectively. Further, 41.7% of children were above the NHANES 85th percentile for BMI-for-age, categorizing them as overweight/obese. Assessment of obesity by other established criteria for children, such as the triceps skinfold and body fat percentage, produced significantly lower estimates than did BMI. This is consistent with patterns found in other stunted populations, suggesting that BMI be employed in conjunction with other methods when assessing overweight/obesity in these groups. Finally, although stunting and overweight/obesity were both common in this study, at the individual level height z scores were positively correlated to z scores of various measures of adiposity.
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