A national survey of the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity in Italy

Binkin, Nancy; Fontana, G; Lamberti, Anna; Cattaneo, Chiara; Baglìo, Giovanni; Perra, Alberto; Spinelli, Angela

doi:10.1111/j.1467-789x.2009.00650.x

Cited by 79 publications

(83 citation statements)

References 16 publications

(18 reference statements)

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“…In fact, the results showed a higher prevalence of overweight/obesity in those adolescents whose mothers were housemakers compared to those whose mothers were employed. These findings contrast with previous studies on younger children, which pointed out the opposite effect (34,35) but are in agreement with the results of the Italian survey conducted on younger children (36).…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 57%

Overweight and Obesity in Italian Adolescents: Examined Prevalence and Socio-demographic Factors

Galfo

D’Addezio

Censi

et al. 2016

Cent Eur J Public Health

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SUMMARYAim: This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of overweight and obesity derived from measured data of weight and height in a cross-sectional sample of adolescents in the Italian region of Lazio and to analyse their association with different socio-demographic factors.Methods: The study was conducted in a representative sample of 15-16-year-old adolescents recruited in secondary schools between December 2011 and May 2012. 369 adolescents were investigated. Body weight, height and waist circumference were measured. The BMI of each subject was calculated, and the prevalence of overweight and obesity was determined by age and sex using the IOTF reference values and WHO growth standards. Waist circumference/height ratio (WC/Ht) was calculated and the subjects were classified using the cut-off of 0.5: WC/Ht ≥ 0.5 and WC/Ht < 0.5. Selected socio-demographic characteristics were assessed via questionnaire.Results: The percentages of overweight and obesity were high, 15.4% and 7.9%, respectively, with significant difference between males and females (19.1% vs. 12.6% for overweight and 11.1% vs. 5.3% for obese) using the IOFT reference. The ratio WC/Ht ≥ 0.5 was observed in 12.7% of the sample (all the obese and 29.8% of the overweight subjects). Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that gender, school municipality, mother's employment status, and family structure had a significant effect on ponderal status (overweight/obesity vs. normal weight).Conclusion: These findings show a high prevalence of body weight excess associated with socio-demographic factors in the Italian sample investigated, and the need for effective public health interventions to combact obesity with particular attention to disadvantaged adolescents.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 57%

Overweight and Obesity in Italian Adolescents: Examined Prevalence and Socio-demographic Factors

Galfo

D’Addezio

Censi

et al. 2016

Cent Eur J Public Health

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“…[18][19][20] However, in Italy, obesity prevalence is almost twice as high, particularly in the southern region. 21 It therefore comes as no surprise that most primary care physicians in our survey agreed that childhood obesity management is relevant for primary care and that the highest rates were reported among the Italian physicians.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Childhood Obesity: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of European Pediatric Care Providers

et al. 2013

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WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Health care professionals face problems managing obesity and often fail to follow guidelines for its management in practice. Only a few singlecountry reports are available describing delivery of primary care to children with obesity. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:Nearly all primary pediatric care providers from 4 European countries recognize the importance of obesity in pediatric practice, but only half use BMI clinically, and many lack the confidence and the infrastructure needed for providing care to patients with obesity. abstract OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare attitudes, skills, and practices in childhood obesity management in 4 European countries with different obesity prevalence, health care systems, and economic situations. METHODS:A cross-sectional survey was distributed to primary health care providers from France, Italy, Poland, and Ukraine. The questionnaire was returned by 1119 participants with a response rate of 32.4%. RESULTS:The study revealed that most of the primary health care providers were convinced of their critical role in obesity management but did not feel sufficiently competent to perform effectively. The adherence to recommended practices such as routine weight and height measurements, BMI calculation, and plotting growth parameters on recommended growth charts was poor. Most primary health care providers recognized the need for continuing professional education in obesity management, stressing the importance of appropriate dietary counseling. CONCLUSIONS:The study underlines insufficient implementation of national guidelines for management of obesity regardless of the country and its health system. It also makes clear that the critical problem is not elaboration of guidelines but rather creating support systems for implementation of the medical standards among the primary care practitioners. Pediatrics 2013;132:e100-e108 AUTHORS:

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“…[3][4][5][6] Furthermore, health is strongly related to socioeconomic status and studies have shown that children of parents with a lower education have the highest risk of overweight and obesity. 7,8 Aggregated area level information can be used as a proxy for socioeconomic status when individual data is not available. 9 In our previous study, the urban-rural gradient in overweight and obesity was explained by the area education level, 2 but it is likely that it reflects environmental, cultural and individual lifestyle differences.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-level influences on childhood obesity in Sweden: societal factors, parental determinants and child’s lifestyle

et al. 2012

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BACKGROUND: Swedish school children living in rural areas and in areas with low education are at excess risk of becoming overweight. This study examines influences of societal and individual characteristics (children and their parents) on prevalence of overweight and obesity, in a national sample of 7-9-year-old children. METHOD: Anthropometric and lifestyle data were collected in a nationally representative sample of 3636 Swedish children. Overweight and obesity (International Obesity Task Force (IOTF)) data were analyzed in relation to lifestyle factors, parental weight, education and breast-feeding. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight was 15.6% including 2.6% obese. Urbanization level and parental characteristics (weight status and education) were related to risk of overweight. Overall less favorable lifestyle characteristics were observed in rural areas and for children of low/medium educated mothers. Boys had greater risk of obesity in semi-urban and rural areas but this was not true for girls. For children's overweight, the living area effect was attenuated in multivariate analysis, while there was an association with origin of parents, high parental weight and medium maternal education. For obesity, the living area effect remained in boys while having two non-Nordic parents predicted obesity in girls. Parental weight status was associated with obesity in both girls and boys. CONCLUSION: Individual and societal factors influence children's weight status, and parental weight status is a strong determinant. Including overweight and obese parents in future health promoting interventions could be a strategy to prevent children from becoming overweight, but identifying those parents may prove difficult. To ensure reaching children with the greatest needs, targeting high risk areas might be a more effective approach.

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A national survey of the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity in Italy

Cited by 79 publications

References 16 publications

Overweight and Obesity in Italian Adolescents: Examined Prevalence and Socio-demographic Factors

Overweight and Obesity in Italian Adolescents: Examined Prevalence and Socio-demographic Factors

Childhood Obesity: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of European Pediatric Care Providers

Multi-level influences on childhood obesity in Sweden: societal factors, parental determinants and child’s lifestyle

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