engleski

Overweight and obesity among children and adolescents in Zagreb, Croatia

Data for body mass index (BMI=weight/height2) from 4496 Croatian children (ages 6-19y) from the Zagreb growth study undertaken in 1997, have been used to obtain age- and sex-specific empirical percentiles. These have been compared with corresponding WHO/NCHS percentiles. There were no differences between these data sets for the 5th through the 50th percentile but the 85th and 95th percentiles were up to the age of 11y higher for Croatian children, and after this age markedly lower. The WHO/NCHS reference was used to define obesity (BMI>95th percentile) and overweight (85th≤ BMI≤ 95th percentile). Overall (6-18y), the combined prevalence of obesity and overweight was 15%. It was twice as high in children aged 6-9y (27%) than in adolescents aged 10-18y (12%). The overall prevalence of obesity among 6-18y olds was relatively low (4.5%) but it reached unfavorable 10% in children. Girls were more likely to be obese. The prevalence of obesity among adolescents was 3% and there is indication that it is decreasing. Further research will be directed towards understanding the reasons underlying different obesity trends between children and adolescents of the Zagreb population.

child, adolescent, obesity, overweight, prevalence, Croatia

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