Overweight and obesity in rural girls from Poland: changes between 1987 and 2001.

Several studies have documented increased prevalence of overweight and obesity in inhabitants of rural regions, but determinants of their prevalence are complex and not always in one direction. The aim of this study was to estimate both the prevalence and extent of overweight and obesity among rural girls in Poland between 1987 and 2001, as well as to assess differentiation of the phenomenon between regions of different social structures. The data come from two series of cross-sectional studies; the first in 1987 included 7764 girls, and the second in 2001 included 9431 girls aged 9-18. Body mass index (according to the International Obesity Task Force, IOTF) and the EOW index (extent of overweight), which shows by what mean BMI value the overweight boundaries are exceeded, were calculated. Overweight and obesity prevalences in the whole sample, were, respectively, 14.9% and 2.7% in 1987 and 15.5% and 2.5% in 2001, but significant differentiation in the direction of the changes was observed between the examined regions. In one of them, characterized by sudden, mass and long-term unemployment, there was a considerable decrease in overweight and obesity prevalence, whereas in a relatively wealthier region no changes were observed during the 14-year period. Two other regions with a relatively low standard of living and low incomes and education status presented a significant increase in overweight and obesity prevalence. The EOW index increased from 1.9 to 2.1 in the whole examined sample, and it also confirmed significant differences in expansion of overweight and obesity between the examined regions. The complex character of political and socioeconomic changes in Poland during the 1990 s has resulted in two-directional changes in biological measures of living conditions. The analysis of the whole sample led to different results in comparison to separate analyses of each of the examined regions.

Socioeconomic determinants of menarche in rural Polish girls using the decision trees method.

The aim of this study was to assess the usefulness of the decision trees method as a research method of multidimensional associations between menarche and socioeconomic variables. The article is based on data collected from the rural area of Choszczno in the West Pomerania district of Poland between 1987 and 2001. Girls were asked about the appearance of first menstruation (a yes/no method). The average menarchal age was estimated by the probit analysis method, using second grade polynomials. The socioeconomic status of the girls' families was determined using five qualitative variables: fathers' and mothers' educational level, source of income, household appliances and the number of children in a family. For classification based on five socioeconomic variables, one of the most effective algorithms CART (Classification and Regression Trees) was used. In 2001 the menarchal age in 66% of examined girls was properly classified, while a higher efficiency of 70% was obtained for girls examined in 1987. The decision trees method enabled the definition of the hierarchy of socioeconomic variables influencing girls' biological development level. The strongest discriminatory power was attributed to the number of children in a family, and the mother's and then father's educational level. Using this method it is possible to detect differences in strength of socioeconomic variables associated with girls' pubescence before 1987 and after 2001 during the transformation of the economic and political systems in Poland. However, the decision trees method is infrequently applied in social sciences and constitutes a novelty; this article proves its usefulness in examining relations between biological processes and a population's living conditions.

Anthropological assessment of changes in living conditions of the rural population in Poland in the period 1967-2001.

BACKGROUND: Poland is considered an ethnically homogeneous country, with no significant national, linguistic, religious or racial minorities. Thus, social differences in rates of maturation, height and weight may be assumed to contain a negligible genetic component and serve as a reflection of environment, i.e. living conditions. AIM: This study seeks to determine whether changes in economic conditions in Poland, in particular the acute economic crisis of 1977-1989 and the transformation of the political system in 1989, had an effect on the biological status of girls from various categories of the rural population. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Rural girls aged 9.5-18.5 years were studied in 1967 (n = 7889), 1977 (n = 7771), 1987 (n = 13 556) and in 2001 (n = 9599). The stratification of participants (farmers, farm-workers and non-farmers) was based on the source of their family income, parents' education, number of children per family and household appliances. Age at menarche (AM), body height, and weight were used as biological indicators of living conditions. RESULTS: During the decade 1967-1977, while a relatively good economic situation prevailed in the country, AM decreased by 0.64 years and distinct secular trends in height and weight were noted. During the decade 1977-1987, years of economic crisis, secular trends were arrested and AM increased by 0.11 years. Landless rural families were more strongly affected by food shortages than were farmers who were the food producers. The study, repeated in 2001, showed positive secular trends in body height and a decrease in AM of 0.24 years for decade for daughters of farmers this decrease in AM was twice as high as in non-farmer families. The latter group experienced acute unemployment after the political and economic system transformation (1989). AM was earliest in daughters of non-farmers, and latest in those from farmer families. In 1967, the difference between the mean ages at AM for these groups amounted to 0.53 years, in 1977 to 0.44 years, in 1987 to 0.33 years and to only 0.15 years in 2001. CONCLUSION: The categories of the rural population, farmers, farm-workers and landless rural inhabitants were variously affected by the economic crisis, as well as by the process of economic transformation. This shows that living conditions of each of those categories changed in different ways and to a different degree during the years 1967-2001. Farmers' families achieved the highest social advancement, as the AM of girls from those families decreased by 0.98 years compared to those from farmer-worker and landless rural families, which decreased by 0.85 and 0.60 years, respectively.

Changes in the biological status of Polish girls from a rural region associated with economic and political processes in the period 1967-2001.

The age at menarche, body height and weight of the daughters of farmers, farmer-workers and landless villagers in a rural region of Poland were studied. In the period 1967-1977, a time of economic development, a decrease in age at menarche (by 0.74 years) and a secular trend in body height (by 2.4 cm/decade) was observed. In 1977-1987, a period of acute economic crisis, age at menarche increased by 0.16 years and the secular trend in body height was only 1.1 cm/decade. In 1987-2001, age at menarche decreased and body height increased by 0.28 years and 2.9 cm respectively. The percentage of families owning a car, freezer and video increased during this period. These last results are indicative of an improvement in living conditions, but the villagers regard themselves as losers as a result of the political transformation (1989) in Poland.

Age at menarche as an indicator of the socioeconomic situation of rural girls in Poland in 1967, 1977, and 1987.

Village girls, 9.5-18.5 years of age, inhabiting various regions of Poland, were surveyed in 1967 (n = 7,886), 1977 (n = 7,771), and 1987 (n = 11,479). Based on the source of income of the families, three groups were identified: farmers, farmer-workers, and nonfarmers. The girls were also divided on the basis of the number of children in the family and education of their fathers. In all three surveys, the earliest age at menarche was observed in girls from the nonfarmer group and the latest in girls from the farmer group. In 1987 the ages at menarche were 13.27 ± 0.03 years and 13.58 ± 0.04 years, respectively. The rapid acceleration of menarcheal age (0.64 year) between 1967 and 1977 was halted, and perhaps, reversed from 1977 to 1987 (-0.06 year), reflecting the severe social and economic crisis in Poland. The later menarcheal ages observed in the last decade occur mainly among girls from families with four and five children. Girls from better educated rural families were more affected by the crisis than girls from families in which fathers have only an elementary or vocational training education. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.