Age-dependent changes in body size of Greek boys from 1982 to 2002
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Age-dependent changes in body size of Greek boys from 1982 to 2002. / Magkos, Faidon; Manios, Yannis; Christakis, George; Kafatos, Anthony G.
In: Obesity, Vol. 14, No. 2, 2006, p. 289-294.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Age-dependent changes in body size of Greek boys from 1982 to 2002
AU - Magkos, Faidon
AU - Manios, Yannis
AU - Christakis, George
AU - Kafatos, Anthony G
N1 - (Ekstern)
PY - 2006
Y1 - 2006
N2 - Objective: The prevalence of childhood obesity has been rising during the past decades in many parts of the world, including Greece. The dispersion of these trends across age, however, is less clear. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between age and 20-year changes in anthropometric characteristics of Greek boys.Research methods and procedures: A total of 204 and 106 boys 9 years old, 163 and 274 boys 12 years old, and 161 and 240 boys 15 years old were randomly recruited in 1982 and 2002, respectively, throughout the county of Iraklio, Crete, Greece. Height, weight, and BMI were measured.Results: Contemporary 9 and 12 year olds were taller than their peers in 1982 (+2.9% and +1.2%, respectively; p < 0.005), but this was not the case for 15 year olds (-0.8%; p = 0.083). Body weight and BMI were higher now than in the 1980s, and this held true for all age groups (p < 0.001). Increases in weight also showed a decline with advancing age (+17.4%, +13.9%, and +4.0% for 9, 12, and 15 year olds, respectively), whereas BMI changes were similar for those 9 and 12 years of age (approximately 10.5%), but were almost 2-fold higher than in 15 year olds (+5.5%).Discussion: Contemporary boys are taller, heavier, and have higher BMI values than their peers in 1982, but the magnitude of these increases gradually declines with advancing age. Rates of increase in BMI, however, seem to have greatly accelerated compared with previous decades.
AB - Objective: The prevalence of childhood obesity has been rising during the past decades in many parts of the world, including Greece. The dispersion of these trends across age, however, is less clear. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between age and 20-year changes in anthropometric characteristics of Greek boys.Research methods and procedures: A total of 204 and 106 boys 9 years old, 163 and 274 boys 12 years old, and 161 and 240 boys 15 years old were randomly recruited in 1982 and 2002, respectively, throughout the county of Iraklio, Crete, Greece. Height, weight, and BMI were measured.Results: Contemporary 9 and 12 year olds were taller than their peers in 1982 (+2.9% and +1.2%, respectively; p < 0.005), but this was not the case for 15 year olds (-0.8%; p = 0.083). Body weight and BMI were higher now than in the 1980s, and this held true for all age groups (p < 0.001). Increases in weight also showed a decline with advancing age (+17.4%, +13.9%, and +4.0% for 9, 12, and 15 year olds, respectively), whereas BMI changes were similar for those 9 and 12 years of age (approximately 10.5%), but were almost 2-fold higher than in 15 year olds (+5.5%).Discussion: Contemporary boys are taller, heavier, and have higher BMI values than their peers in 1982, but the magnitude of these increases gradually declines with advancing age. Rates of increase in BMI, however, seem to have greatly accelerated compared with previous decades.
KW - Adolescent
KW - Age Factors
KW - Aging/physiology
KW - Body Height
KW - Body Mass Index
KW - Body Size/physiology
KW - Body Weight
KW - Child
KW - Greece/epidemiology
KW - Humans
KW - Male
KW - Obesity/epidemiology
U2 - 10.1038/oby.2006.37
DO - 10.1038/oby.2006.37
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 16571855
VL - 14
SP - 289
EP - 294
JO - Obesity
JF - Obesity
SN - 1930-7381
IS - 2
ER -
ID: 297155128