Reference data for obesity: 85th and 95th percentiles of body mass index (wt/ht squared) and triceps skinfold thickness
Article Abstract:
Body mass index (BMI, the ratio of weight to height squared) and triceps skinfold thickness (TSF, the amount of fat under the skin of the arm over the triceps muscle) are two measures that are commonly used to diagnose obesity. Measurements of BMI and TSF that are greater than the 85th percentile for the population are often used to define obesity, and those greater than the 95th percentile are used to define superobesity. In general, studies designed to determine the prevalence of obesity in a sample population compare BMI and TSF in the sample population with BMI and TSF values previously reported for a reference population. The choice of an appropriate reference population for comparison is important because factors such as age, sex and race may influence BMI and TSF. Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey I (NHANES I, a study gathering information on body measurements of 20,839 people aged 6 months to 74 years) were used to determine the 85th and 95th percentiles of BMI and TSF based on race, sex and age. The results of this study show that 85th and 95th percentile BMIs are greater in women than in men beginning at age 30 and 20, respectively, and this difference increases with age. Racial differences in BMI in females appear during adolescence and continue into adulthood. The 85th percentile of BMI was greater in black women than in white women for all ages over 10. White males had greater 85th percentile BMIs than black males until the age of 35, when the trend was reversed, and racial differences increased with age. The 85th and 95th percentiles for TSF increased with increasing age and were almost two times greater in women than in men at all ages. Black males had lower TSFs than white males at all ages. TSFs of adult black females were greater than those for adult white females. This study shows that the 85th and 95th percentiles for BMI and TSF differ based on race, sex and age, and provides reference data that can be used to evaluate these measures of obesity in sample populations. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0002-9165
Year: 1991
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Long-term morbidity and mortality of overweight adolescents: a follow-up of the Harvard growth study of 1922 to 1935
Article Abstract:
Individuals who are overweight during adolescence may have a higher risk of developing certain diseases later in life, regardless of their weight as adults. Among 181 individuals interviewed in 1988 who had participated in the Harvard Growth Study of 1922 to 1935, 85 had been classified as overweight and 96 had been classified as lean during adolescence. The risk of death from all causes was twice as high among men classified as overweight during adolescence than among those classified as lean. Women who had been overweight during adolescence did not have an increased risk of death, compared to those who had been lean. Both men and women who were overweight during adolescence had a higher risk of developing coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis than those who had been lean. Men who were overweight had a higher risk of developing gout than those who had been lean. Women who were overweight had a higher risk of developing arthritis than those who had been lean.
Publication Name: The New England Journal of Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0028-4793
Year: 1992
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Television Viewing as a Cause of Increasing Obesity Among Children in the United States, 1986-1990
Article Abstract:
Children who watch more than five hours of television per day are much more likely to be overweight. Researchers studied 746 children aged 10-15, and found that the children watching over 5 hours of TV per day were nearly five times as likely to be overweight as children watching 0-2 hours per day. Excessive television viewing may be responsible for more than 60% of the overweight in this group of children.
Publication Name: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 1072-4710
Year: 1996
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