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Updated: Jun 5, 2025
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
[Characteristics of fat-free mass distribution in children aged 3-17 years in China]
1National Institute for Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention/Key Laboratory of Public Nutrition and Health, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China/Key Laboratory of Human Milk Science, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing100050, China.
Insights
Fat-free mass index (FFMI) in Chinese children shows significant gender differences after age 11, with boys having higher values. Regional variations in FFMI highlight the need for targeted nutritional attention in northeastern and northwestern China.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Body Composition Analysis
- Growth and Development
Context:
- Understanding pediatric body composition is crucial for assessing health and nutritional status.
- Previous data on fat-free mass (FFM) and fat-free mass index (FFMI) distribution in Chinese children is limited.
- This study addresses the need for updated, large-scale data on FFM and FFMI across diverse Chinese pediatric populations.
Purpose:
- To delineate the distribution of fat-free mass (FFM) and fat-free mass index (FFMI) in Chinese children aged 3-17 years.
- To analyze age- and gender-specific variations in FFM and FFMI.
- To identify regional disparities in FFM and FFMI across China.
Summary:
- A comprehensive analysis of 70,853 children (aged 3-17) from the National Nutrition and Health Systematic Survey (2019-2021) revealed significant gender differences in FFMI.
- Boys exhibited a consistently higher FFMI than girls, with the divergence becoming statistically significant after age 11 and widening with age.
- Regional analysis indicated higher FFMI in boys from northeast China and lower FFMI in both genders from northwest China.
Impact:
- The findings underscore the importance of gender-specific reference values for FFMI in pediatric populations.
- Highlights the need for targeted nutritional interventions and monitoring for children in specific regions, particularly northeastern and northwestern China.
- Provides essential data for public health initiatives aimed at optimizing child growth and development in China.
Abstract:
Objective: To describe the distribution of fat-free mass (FFM) and fat-free mass index (FFMI) in children aged 3-17 years in China. Methods: Data were collected from National Nutrition and Health Systematic Survey in 0-18 years old children in China. By using multi-stage stratified randomized cluster sampling method, the project was conducted in 28 survey points in urban and rural areas in 14 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) in 7 regions in China from 2019 to 2021. FFM was measured using bioelectrical impedance meter. Finally, the body composition data of 70 853 children were included in the analysis. M (Q1, Q3) was used to describe the gender and age specific FFM and FFMI of the children in different regions. Kruskal-Wallis H rank sum test was used to compare FFM and FFMI of boys and girls in same age group, boys in different age groups, girls in different age groups, as well as boys in same age group and girls in same age group in different regions. DSCF method was used for pairwise comparisons. Results: After the age of 11 years, the difference of FFMI between boys and girls increased year by year. The FFMI was 14.2 kg/m2 in boys and 13.8 kg/m2 in girls at 11 years old, the difference was significant (χ2=135.86, P<0.001). The difference of FFMI between boys and girls exceed 1.0 kg/m2 from 12 years old, and FFMI was 15.3 kg/m2 in boys and 14.2 kg/m2 in girls at 12 year old, the difference was significant (χ2=597.27, P<0.001). The FFMI was 17.5 kg/m2 in boys and 14.7 kg/m2 in girls at 16 years old, the difference was significant (χ2=2 543.60, P<0.001). The FFMI was higher in boys in northeast China, while the FFMI was lower in both boys and girls in northwest China. Conclusions: Gender specific difference was observed in the increase of FFMI with age. The FFMI was significantly higher in boys than in girls after 11 years old. It is necessary to pay attention to the problem of FFM in children in northeastern and northwestern China.
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