Trends in excess weight and thinness among Spanish schoolchildren in the period 1992–2004: the Cuenca study

Objective: To review recent data on objectively measured overweight/obesity in national representative samples of European adolescents (aged 10-18 years), as well as availability of studies assessing trends in overweight/obesity in this target group. Attention was paid to the ability of the data to describe the obesity epidemic, especially in sociodemographic subgroups. Design/setting/subjects: Data on prevalence and trends in overweight/obesity among adolescents in the twenty-seven European Community member states, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, available as scientific publications as well as reports or unpublished data by the end of 2009, were retrieved. Reports on the most recent objectively measured data from national representative samples were selected and described with regard to the years of data collection, sample sizes, response rates, age ranges included, trends by age, type of measures of overweight/obesity, sociodemographic variables and the sources of information. Results: Objectively measured data on national representative samples were identified for only half of the countries, and the trend studies were mainly conducted applying subnational samples. Most studies used the criteria from the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) to define overweight/obesity, but the age ranges studied and the years of data collection varied, and information on sample sizes and response rates were often not presented. Data on trends of overweight/obesity over time are increasing, and the most recent studies indicate that the prevalence rate of overweight/obesity has stabilized. Few studies reported data by sociodemographic subgroups other than gender and age. Conclusions: Objectively measured data on national representative samples of adolescents appear scattered, and there is a large heterogeneity with respect to the quality and comparability of available data. Increasing use of the IOTF criteria for overweight/obesity contributes to improved comparability across studies. Data by sociodemographic subgroups, and in particular by socio-economic status, are scarce.Several scientific reports have shown that the obesity epidemic has reached children and adolescents in Europe. The reports suggest that there are clear geographic differences within the continent, with southern Europe and the British Isles reporting the highest prevalence rates of overweight/obesity among children and adolescents (1)(2)(3)(4) . In 2007, WHO Europe published a report on the challenge of obesity in Europe (1) . It was concluded that objectively measured and valid data on BMI were lacking for about half of the European countries. Furthermore, making comparisons between countries was difficult due to great variation in response rates, age ranges included, years of data collection and definition of overweight and obesity (1) . Considering the importance given to childhood obesity in the current public health discourse, as well as the urgent need to have high-quality

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Availability of data assessing the prevalence and trends of overweight and obesity among European adolescents

Lien

Henriksen

Nymoen

et al. 2010

“…Anthropometry and adiposity Methods for data collection were identical in both surveys and have been reported elsewhere (2,16) . Briefly, for weight we calculated the mean of two readings from a digital scale (100 g accuracy) with children lightly dressed and without shoes.…”

Section: Study Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To our knowledge, the Cuenca Study is the first on schoolchildren in a Mediterranean country which simultaneously examines the trends in overweight and thinness in the last two decades (16) . Accordingly, the present work has examined the trends in BMI and adiposity among schoolchildren from Cuenca, Spain, over the period 2004-2010.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in excess of weight, underweight and adiposity among Spanish children from 2004 to 2010: the Cuenca Study

Martínez‐Vizcaíno

Martínez

Notario‐Pacheco

et al. 2012

Self Cite

Objective: To examine the trends in BMI and adiposity among schoolchildren from Cuenca, Spain, during 2004Spain, during -2010. Design: Two methodologically comparable surveys were carried out in 2004 and 2010. Setting: Primary schools in Cuenca, a province in the middle of Spain. Subjects: All schoolchildren aged 8-11 years, belonging to 4th and 5th grades from twenty schools in the Province of Cuenca, were invited to participate in both cross-sectional studies. Weight, height and body fat percentage (BF%) from bioelectrical impedance were measured with standardized procedures. Results: The study included 550 boys and 539 girls in 2004, and 569 boys and 531 girls in 2010. In 2010, 8?1 % of children were underweight, 25?9 % overweight and 9?5 % obese. From 2004 to 2010, the prevalence of overweight rose from 21?6 % to 28?0 % (P 5 0?004) and BF % increased from 22?6 % to 24?0 % (P 5 0?001) among boys. No change was observed in overweight and BF % in girls, or in underweight and obesity in either sex. In boys, most of the distribution of BMI and BF % shifted to the right; in contrast, among girls no substantial change was apparent in the distribution of BMI and BF %. Conclusions: From 2004 to 2010 the prevalence of overweight and adiposity has continued to increase among boys. However, the obesity epidemic may have levelled off in girls. Given that the prevalence of childhood excess weight is still very high, the current evidence-based efforts to halt the obesity epidemic in Spain should be strengthened.

“…Recently some studies have used the international reference cut-offs (10) to describe the trends in thinness at the national level (19,(22)(23)(24) . From this point onwards, unless otherwise specified, the term 'thinness' as used in the present article refers to the cut-off identified by Cole et al ('BMI 17 at age 18').…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in thinness prevalence among adolescents in ten European countries and the USA (1998–2006): a cross-sectional survey

Lazzeri

Rossi

Kelly

et al. 2013