Weight Status Among Iranian Adolescents: Comparison of Four Different Criteria



Bahreini N^{1, 3} ; Noor MI³ ; Koon PB³ ; Talib RA^{3, 4} ; Lubis SH⁵ ; Ganjali Dashti M⁶ ; Salehiabargouei A^{1, 2} ; Esmaillzadeh A^{1, 2} Show Affiliations
Source: Journal of Research in Medical Sciences Published:2013

Abstract

Background: Obesity or being overweight is a major health problem in Iran. Only few studies are available that compare the obesity prevalence by four diferent available criteria. Te aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity among Isfahani adolescents based on four diferent defnitions. Materials and Methods: Tis cross-sectional study was conducted on 3002 Isfahani students (1377 males; 1625 females) aged 11-18 years. Anthropometric measurements including weight and height were measured and body mass index (BMI) was calculated. Sex-specifc BMI-for-age reference data of the Iranian national data, Center for Disease Control data (CDC2000), International Obesity taskforce data (IOTF), and recent World Health Organization (WHO) data was used to defne overweight and obesity. Results: Te mean age of the studied population was 14.8 years and the mean BMI was 20.3 kg/m2. Girls were on an average 1.4 years older and had almost one unit higher BMI than boys. Underweight was prevalent among almost 38.5% and 25.5% of adolescents as per WHO2007 and national Iranian cut-of points, respectively. Te prevalence rates reached 39.5% and 45.8% by IOTF and CDC2000 criteria, respectively. Te highest prevalence of overweight was obtained by IOTF cut-points (30.5%), while CDC2000 criteria, WHO2007, and national Iranian cut-points gave similar prevalence results (4.7%, 4.0%, and 4.4%); 2.4% of the studied population were found to be obese by WHO2007 defnition, while this rate was 0.8%, 0.5%, and 0.8% by IOTF, CDC2000, and national Iranian cut-points. Conclusion: Almost all defnitions revealed coexistence of underweight, overweight, and obesity among Isfahani adolescents. Huge diferences exist between diferent criteria for assessing weight status among children. To understand the best appropriate criteria for Iranian adolescents, future studies should focus on the predictability of obesity related co-morbidities by these criteria.