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Updated: Jun 21, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
[Using three different screening methods to study overweight and simple obesity among children under age 7 in Ningbo
Ying-Ying Qian1, Cui-Qing Xu, Lan-Qiu Lv
1Ningbo Women and Children's Hospital, Ningbo 315012, China.
Insights
Childhood obesity screening in Ningbo found prevalence rates of 4.25% overweight and 2.88% obese in children under 7. Boys showed higher rates, and prevalence increased with age, highlighting the need for early intervention programs.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Public Health
- Child Nutrition
Context:
- Childhood obesity is a growing global concern.
- Early identification and intervention are crucial for long-term health outcomes.
- Assessing prevalence using standardized metrics is essential for public health strategies.
Purpose:
- To determine the prevalence of simple obesity in children under 7 years old in Ningbo.
- To analyze body mass index (BMI) data from overweight screenings using different international standards.
- To compare prevalence rates based on WHO and International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) criteria.
Summary:
- A randomized cluster sampling of 64,038 children under 7 in Ningbo revealed overweight and obesity prevalence rates of 4.25% and 2.88%, respectively, using WHO standards.
- Prevalence increased with age, particularly in boys, with significant differences noted between sexes (P < 0.01).
- Critical BMI values (P85, P95) were lower than WHO and IOTF standards, indicating potential underestimation of risk with certain criteria.
Impact:
- Findings underscore the importance of early childhood as a critical window for obesity prevention, especially in boys.
- Highlights the need for establishing appropriate BMI classification standards for early childhood obesity screening.
- Informs public health initiatives and pediatric health programs for effective childhood obesity management.
Objective:
To investigate the occurrence of simple obesity among children under age 7 in Ningbo and to analyze the data regarding body mass index (BMI) from overweight screening under different standards.
Methods:
Randomized cluster sampling was adopted and 64 038 children under 7 years old in Ningbo were chosen and their length/height and weight were measured but pathological and secondary obesity cases were excluded. According to the Standardized Height and Weight set by WHO, more than 10% referring to overweight and more than 20% referring to obesity. Moreover, results of this study were compared with growth standards with WHO's 2006 and IOTF standards.
Results:
According to the Standardized Height and Weight set by WHO, the prevalence rates of overweight and obesity of children under age 7 were 4.25% and 2.88%. The ratio for boys were 4.45% and 3.01%, while for girls as 3.86% and 2.56%, with significant difference (P < 0.01). Data showed that the rates for overweight and obesity increased along with age, reaching 11.84% and 9.68% for boys and 10.14% and 9.46% for girls at the age of 6. The ratios of overweight/obesity among different age groups and sex were 1.15-1.94:1. The critical value for P85, P95 were lower than the standards set by WHO and IOTF. The rates for overweight and obesity for latter were 9.72%, 2.83% and 6.11%, 0.55% respectively.
Conclusion:
Early childhood is the key period for obesity prevention, with boys in particular. Prevention and control for childhood obesity should be included in the programs for children's health. Value of classification standards for the BMI screening of overweight and obesity for children under age 7 should be established in no time.
