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Updated: Sep 3, 2025

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

27.2K

Childhood obesity risk factors by race and ethnicity

María Pineros-Leano1,2, Natalie Grafft1,2, Liliana Aguayo2,3

  • 1School of Social Work, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA.

Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.)
|July 27, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Childhood obesity risk factors differ by race. Fast-food consumption impacts White children, while prepregnancy BMI affects Black and Latino children

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Pediatrics
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Childhood obesity is a growing public health issue with long-term implications.
  • Existing research on risk factors for childhood obesity has not fully addressed long-term contributions to racial/ethnic disparities.
  • Understanding these disparities is crucial for effective intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine child- and maternal-level factors associated with childhood obesity growth trajectories.
  • To investigate how these factors differ among White, Black, and Latino children from birth to 9 years of age.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized group-based trajectory models to identify Body Mass Index (BMI) z score trajectories from birth to 9 years.
  • Employed adjusted logistic regression analysis, stratified by race/ethnicity, to assess associations between risk factors and obesity trajectories.

Main Results:

  • For White children, fast-food consumption was linked to a higher likelihood of an obesity-risk trajectory (OR=1.66).
  • For Black children, prepregnancy BMI was associated with an obesity-risk trajectory (OR=1.05).
  • For Latino children, prepregnancy BMI also predicted an obesity-risk trajectory (OR=1.12).

Conclusions:

  • Significant racial/ethnic differences exist in the risk factors influencing childhood obesity.
  • Further research is needed to identify specific, modifiable risk factors for targeted obesity prevention interventions.
Abstract

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