Secular trends in height, weight, and body mass index in the context of economic and political transformations in Russia from 1885 to 2021.

OBJECTIVES: To study and analyze the impact of socio-economic factors on secular changes in height, weight, and body mass index (BMI) among Moscow's youth over the time interval from the late 19th-early 20th century to the present. METHODS: Anthropometric data, including height, weight, and BMI, were collected through surveys conducted on youths aged 17-20 years in Moscow from the 1880s for males and from the 1920s for females to the present. The dataset includes information on 6434 individuals surveyed from 2000 to 2019, as well as previously published mean values. Economic development indicators, such as gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, monthly average income per capita, and the Gini coefficient, were examined to analyze the association between secular trends in body size and socio-economic conditions. RESULTS: A positive secular trend in height and weight has been observed among Moscow's youth from the early 20th century to the present. Substantial increases in height occurred during the second half of the previous century, stabilizing in the 2000s. Over the analyzed period, both average body weight and BMI values showed a consistent rise. The pattern for BMI exhibited a U-shaped trend, with a decline from the 1970s to the mid-1990s, followed by a subsequent increase. Strong correlations were found between the secular changes in body size among Moscow's youth and temporal fluctuations in key socio-economic indicators, including GDP per capita, monthly average income per capita, and the Gini coefficient. CONCLUSION: The study demonstrates the significant influence of socio-economic conditions on intergenerational changes in body size, as evidenced by the positive secular trend in physique indicators (height, weight, and BMI) among Moscow's youth.

Association between the digit ratio (2D:4D) and body fat distribution in Mordovian students.

BACKGROUND: The length ratio of the second to the fourth finger (2D:4D) is a possible biomarker of prenatal sex hormone levels, which play a significant role in determining sex-related body traits. AIMS: To evaluate the value of the 2D:4D ratio in a Mordovian sample and to test the associations between the 2D:4D ratio and sexually dimorphic morphological traits, such as height and body weight, body mass index, waist and hip circumference, the waist-to-hip ratio, handgrip strength and the skinfold thickness. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The sample studied included 106 individuals of Mordovian ethnicity: 58 males and 48 females, 16-23 years old. The associations between the 2D:4D ratio and morphological traits were evaluated by multivariate regression analysis and correlation analysis. RESULTS: The 2D:4D ratio in males was significantly lower than in females. Most of the associations of the 2D:4D ratio with morphological traits were statistically insignificant. The 2D:4D ratio is only significantly correlated with skinfold thickness of the forearm and the abdomen in females. CONCLUSION: The association between the 2D:4D ratio and skinfold thickness is indicative of the role of prenatal sex hormones in shaping the body fat distribution in females, along with the significant impact of sex hormones at puberty.

Association of the digit ratio (2D: 4D) with sexually dimorphic morphological traits

The length ratio of the second to the fourth finger (2D:4D) is a possible biomarker of prenatal sex hormone levels, which play a significant role in determining the sex-related body traits. The aim of this study was to assess the association between the 2D:4D ratio and morphological characteristics, related to sexual dimorphism. We analyzed a group of Russian males (N = 169) and females (N = 193) aged between 17 and 27 years (with mean ages of 18.6±1.50 and 18.9±1.85, respectively) for the association between the 2D:4D ratio and a wide range of morphological characteristics, some of which were considered in this aspect for the first time. The 2D:4D ratio in males was significantly lower than in females (p ˂ 0.000). A highly statistically significant correlation was found between 2D:4D and sexually dimorphic morphological traits in the total sample. The association of 2D:4D ratio with morphological signs of masculinity/femininity within male and female samples were revealed only as a trend, which was more distinct for the functional indicators (handgrip strength)

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Morphofunctional parameters and adaptation capabilities of students at the beginning of the third millennium.

On the basis of comprehensive anthropometrical observation of 1st and 2nd year students from different faculties of Moscow State University (MSU) carried out in 2002-2003, functional characteristics of the cardiovascular system (systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate) were investigated in 205 young men and 327 young women along with traditional morphological parameters. In comparisons of contemporary young men and women with their peers, whose characteristics were obtained in the course of investigations carried out over the period 1920-1990, secular trends towards an increase of body length and a worsening of strength indices were detected. Evaluation and comparative analysis of adaptation capabilities of students were carried out based on screening and assessment of adaptation potential using the Bayevsky method (1987). It was shown that the parameters of physical development and the level of adaptation of an organism to environmental conditions can be used as additional markers for determination of the health status of contemporary students for early prevention of some diseases, improvement of their physical status and increase of adaptation potentials.