Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity and Their Impact on Lung Function in Healthy Bulgarian Children and Adolescents:
Meri Hristamyan1, Stoilka Mandadzhieva2, Plamena Stoimenova2
1Department of Epidemiology and Disaster Medicine, Faculty of Public Health, Medical University of Plovdiv, 4002 Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
Insights
Overweight and obesity affect 19.5% of healthy children, with increased weight correlating to greater lung function (FVC, FEV1, PEF, FEF50). Obese 7-year-olds showed the lowest spirometry values.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Pulmonology
- Childhood Obesity Research
- Public Health Studies
Background:
- Growing evidence links obesity to altered lung function in children.
- Understanding these effects in healthy children is crucial for early intervention.
- Prevalence of overweight and obesity in pediatric populations is a significant public health concern.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity in healthy Bulgarian school children.
- To assess the impact of excess weight on pulmonary function parameters in this cohort.
- To analyze the relationship between weight status and lung function indices.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study involving 671 healthy Bulgarian school children aged 7-18 years.
- Anthropometric measurements including height, weight, and Body Mass Index (BMI).
- Comprehensive pulmonary function assessment using spirometry to measure FVC, FEV1, PEF, and FEF50.
Main Results:
- 19.5% of children were classified as overweight (131) or obese (97).
- Overweight prevalence peaked at ages 10, 11, 12, and 17; obesity peaked at 7, 10, and 14 years.
- Increased weight correlated with increased height and improved lung function parameters (FVC, FEV1, PEF, FEF50), except in obese 7-year-olds who showed lower FEV1.
Conclusions:
- Weight gain in children is associated with height growth and generally with improved spirometry indices.
- However, obese 7-year-old children demonstrated the lowest lung function values.
- These findings highlight the complex relationship between weight, growth, and respiratory health in children.
Abstract:
Background/Objectives: There is increasing evidence on the effect of obesity on lung function in children with and without respiratory diseases. The aim of was to evaluate the prevalence of overweight and obesity and their impact on lung function parameters among healthy children. Methods: Six hundred and seventy-one healthy Bulgarian school children (339 males) aged 7-18 years were included in the study. All participants completed anthropometric measurements, including standing height, weight, and BMI. The studied group underwent comprehensive pulmonary function assessment. Results: The overweight and obese children group consisted of 131-overweight, 97, and obese, 34, children, accounting for 19.5% or every fifth child. The highest prevalence of overweight was at the ages of 10, 11, 12 and 17 years, and that of obesity was 7, 10 and 14 years, respectively. We compared normal weight, overweight and obese children in every age group and found that an increase in weight was associated with increased height and increased lung function parameters, such as FVC, FEV1, PEF, and FEF50. To overcome the effect of height, we compared normal weight and overweight obese children in height groups and found nonsignificant differences in the spirometric indices. Only in the 130-139 cm group the obese children had lower values of FEV1(L): 1.78 ± 0.13 vs. 1.91 ± 0.19 (NS) in children with normal weight. Conclusions: The increase in weight is associated with height growth, and the same pattern is observed for the mean spirometry indices, with lowest values found only in obese 7-year-old children.
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