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Longitudinal study of body weight changes in children: who is gaining and who is losing weight

Donald A Williamson1, Hongmei Han, William D Johnson

  • 1Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA. williada@pbrc.edu

Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.)
|October 2, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Overweight children tend to lose body weight, while non-overweight children tend to gain weight over time. This longitudinal study observed body mass index (BMI) and body fat changes in children over 28 months.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Public Health
  • Human Growth and Development

Background:

  • Childhood obesity prevalence has historically risen but recently plateaued.
  • Obesity prevention trials indicate differing weight changes between overweight and non-overweight children.
  • Longitudinal data on weight changes without intervention are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To test the hypothesis that overweight children lose body weight/fat and non-overweight children gain body weight/fat.
  • To examine weight and body fat changes in children over 28 months.
  • To analyze weight trends across different genders and racial groups.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study of 451 children (4th-6th grade) over 28 months.
  • Measurements included height, weight, and body fat at baseline and follow-up.
  • Body Mass Index (BMI) percentile calculated based on age, gender, and height.

Main Results:

  • Higher baseline BMI percentile and body fat correlated with greater decreases in BMI and body fat.
  • Overweight children showed a tendency to lose weight; non-overweight children tended to gain weight.
  • BMI percentile means remained stable for white boys/girls and African-American boys, but increased for African-American girls.

Conclusions:

  • Findings support the hypothesis that weight status influences subsequent weight change in children.
  • Childhood obesity and overweight prevalence remained stable due to similar incidence and remission rates.
  • Weight management trends differ based on initial weight status, highlighting the importance of baseline BMI.

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