[Prevalence of obesity among school children in Neishabour [2005]]

ABSTRACT

At present, the prevalence of obesity among children and youngsters is rapidly increasing in developed countries. Few studies have been carried out on childhood obesity in Iran using standard references. Assessing the prevalence of obesity among school children in Neishabour using several references including Iranian reference, CDC 2000 and IOTF 2000. In a cross-sectional trial, 1471 students aged 6-12 were selected by a two-stage cluster sampling. Height and weight of students were measured and BMI was calculated. Obesity was defined as having a BMI?95th percentile of Iranian reference or CDC. Also, the students with BMI greater than IOTF values were identified as obese. Findings: The prevalence of obesity according to the Iranian reference, CDC and IOTF were 8.5% [CI 95%, 7.1-10.0%], 4.6% [CI 95%, 3.5-6.0%], and 7.3% [CI 95%, 6.0-9.0%], respectively. Using CDC reference, a significant difference in prevalence of obesity between girls and boys [5.8% vs. 3.1%] was found [p<0.05]. When the Iranian reference was applied, the prevalence of obesity was shown to be significantly higher in boys aged 7 and 8 compared to girls [15.2% vs. 6.4% and 12.5% vs. 4.0%], respectively [p<0.05]. Finally, the application of IOTF reference produced no significant difference in prevalence of obesity between girls and boys. As the results of different references in determining the prevalence of obesity were not the same, use of relevant BMI percentile is recommended