growth pattern of school children in Saudi Arabia

A cross-sectional study of schoolchildren in Saudi Arabia was carried out to determine their health status. The sample was selected using a multistage stratified sampling technique and anthropometric measurements were taken. The growth charts of height for age, and weight by age were constructed and smoothed by the spline regression polynomial technique. The study showed that Saudi boys and girls have similar growth patterns to their American counterparts. However, they were retarded by less than one standard deviation compared with the National Council of Health Statistics standards. Schoolboys and girls with normal weight and height for age constitute about 58% and 53% respectively of the total sample. Overweight and obesity were more frequent in girls than in boys