Soda consumption and overweight status of 2-year-old mexican-american children in california

Objective: The prevalence of overweight in United States children, 2 to 5 years old, has increased 2‐fold since 1975, with the highest prevalence in Mexican Americans. The objective of this study was to determine the association between current soda consumption and overweight in 2‐year‐old Mexican‐American children. Research Methods and Procedures: The Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas study is a longitudinal study of the health of low‐income Latino pregnant women and their children living in the Salinas Valley, CA. Six hundred pregnant women were enrolled (October 1999 to October 2000), and their children were followed until 2 years of age. This cross‐sectional analysis includes the 354 children who completed the 2‐year follow‐up interview. Standing height (centimeters) and weight (grams) were measured at 2 years. Overweight was defined as ≥95th percentile of the sex‐specific BMI for each child's age. Results: Fifty‐five (15.5%) children were overweight. Over half (56%) reported consuming any soda in the last week. After covariate adjustment, compared with no soda consumption, <1 soda/d was not related to overweight (adjusted odds ratio, 0.97; 95% confidence interval, 0.47, 1.99), but ≥1 soda/d was significantly associated with overweight (adjusted odds ratio, 3.39; 95% confidence interval, 1.43, 8.07), and the test for trend was significant (p = 0.02). Discussion: At 2 years of age, the prevalence of overweight among the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas cohort is higher than the national prevalence estimate for Mexican‐American 2‐ to 5‐year‐old children and is significantly associated with current soda consumption. Interventions to reduce consumption of soda in young Mexican‐American children should be considered.     

Gene-diet interactions in childhood obesity

Childhood overweight and obesity have reached epidemic proportions worldwide, and the increase in weight-associated co-morbidities including premature type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease will soon become major healthcare and economic problems. A number of studies now indicate that the childhood obesity epidemic which has emerged during the past 30 years is a complex multi-factorial disease resulting from interaction of susceptibility genes with an obesogenic environment. This review will focus on gene-diet interactions suspected of having a prominent role in promoting childhood obesity. In particular, the specific genes that will be presented (FTO, MC4R, and NPC1) have recently been associated with childhood obesity through a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and were shown to interact with nutritional components to increase weight gain. Although a fourth gene (APOA2) has not yet been associated with childhood obesity, this review will also present information on what now represents the best characterized gene-diet interaction in promoting weight gain.     

Energy intake, diet composition, energy expenditure, and body fatness of adolescents in northern Greece

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine energy intake, energy expenditure, diet composition, and obesity of adolescents in Northern Greece. Research Methods and Procedures: Anthropometric measurements were taken for all participants. Height, weight, and skinfold thickness at two sites were measured. BMI and percentage body fat were calculated. Energy intake and macronutrient and micronutrient intakes were determined by a 3‐day weighed dietary diary. Energy expenditure was calculated based on calculated resting metabolic rate (RMR) 1 multiplied by an activity factor based on reported physical activity. Results: Thirty‐one percent of boys and 21% of girls had BMI corresponding to ≥25 kg/m² at 18 years and were classified as overweight. Both overweight boys and girls reported a lower energy intake compared with their non‐overweight counterparts when expressed as kilocalories per kilogram body weight. Overweight children had a higher negative energy balance. Both overweight and non‐overweight adolescents had higher than recommended fat intakes. Mean daily carbohydrate, protein, and fat intake, expressed as grams per kilogram body weight, of overweight adolescents were significantly lower compared with the non‐overweight adolescents. Total daily carbohydrate intake, when expressed in grams, was found to be higher for non‐overweight adolescents. Both overweight boys and girls had lower iron intakes than their non‐overweight counterparts. Overweight boys had statistically lower fiber and niacin intakes than non‐overweight boys. Both overweight and non‐overweight adolescents had lower than recommended iron intakes. Furthermore, overweight adolescents consumed more snacks (potato chips, chocolate bars, pizza, cheese pie, and cream pie), more sugar, jam, and honey, and fewer legumes, vegetables, and fruits than their non‐overweight counterparts. Discussion: Reported energy intake of overweight adolescents was lower than their non‐overweight counterparts. Regarding diet composition overweight subjects had significantly lower intakes of carbohydrates compared with non‐overweight subjects. The food consumption pattern of overweight children showed less adherence to the traditional Mediterranean diet.     

Relationship of Physical Fitness to Prevalence and Incidence of Overweight among Schoolchildren

Objectives: We examined the relationship between comprehensive fitness tests and overweight using a school surveillance system in a racially diverse city in the United States. Research Methods and Procedures: Trained physical education teachers measured weight, height, and fitness annually from 2001 to 2003. We compiled data for a cross‐sectional analysis (11, 845 measurements on 6297 students, 5 to14 years of age) and a 1‐year prospective analysis (4215 measurements on 2927 students not overweight at baseline, 5 to 13 years of age). Overweight was defined as a BMI ≥95th percentile (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2000 growth charts), and underfit was defined as failing at least one of five fitness tests: endurance run, abdominal strength, flexibility, upper body strength, and agility (Amateur Athletic Union and Fitnessgram). Associations between fitness and overweight were examined using multivariate logistic regression models, adjusting for sociodemographic status and repeated measurements over time. Results: The mean number of fitness tests passed was lower among students with a BMI above the 80th percentile. Overweight incidence over 1 year was 7% and 2% for underfit and fit girls, respectively (odds ratio, 3.3; 95% confidence interval, 2.0 to 5.6). Not passing either the endurance run or upper body strength test was associated with overweight incidence in both boys and girls. After adjusting for baseline BMI, the endurance run remained a significant predictor of incident overweight among girls (odds ratio, 2.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.1 to 3.5). Discussion: Findings support a cross‐sectional inverse relationship between physical fitness and overweight among school‐aged children. The direction of causation between fitness and overweight is not clearly established and merits further study.     

Cluster Analysis Methods Help to Clarify the Activity—BMI Relationship of Chinese Youth

Objective: To use cluster analysis to create patterns of overall activity and inactivity in a diverse sample of Chinese youth and to evaluate their use in predicting overweight status. Research Methods and Procedures: The study populations were drawn from the 1997 and 2000 years of the longitudinal China Health and Nutrition Survey, comprised of 2702 and 2641 schoolchildren in the 1997 and 2000 cross‐sectional samples, respectively, and 1175 children in the longitudinal cohort. Cluster analysis was used to group children into nonoverlapping activity/inactivity “clusters” that were subsequently used in models of prevalent and incident overweight. Results were compared with traditional models, with activity and inactivity coded separately, to assess whether further insight was gained with the cluster analysis methodology. Results: Moderately and highly active youth were shown to have significantly decreased odds of overweight in both cross‐sectional and longitudinal analyses using cluster analysis. In incident longitudinal models, youth in the high activity/high inactivity cluster had the lowest odds of overweight [odds ratio = 0.12 (0.03, 0.44)]; in contrast, results from traditional models failed to show any significant relationship between overweight and activity or inactivity. Discussion: Cluster analysis methods allow researchers to simultaneously capture activity and inactivity in new ways. In this comparative study, only with the clustering methodology did we find a significant effect of activity on incident overweight, furthering our ability to examine this complex relationship. Interestingly, no effect of increasing levels of inactivity was observed using either method, indicating that activity seems to be the more important determinant of overweight in this population.     

A survey of overweight,body shape perception and eating attitude of Korean female university students

[Purpose]

We obtained basic data on a proper weight loss training program by considering the relationship between body mass index (BMI), the perception of appearance, and eating attitudes of Korean female university students.

[Methods]

The survey and anthropometry for the perception of appearance and eating attitudes were conducted targeting 657 female university students located in Seoul, Busan, Ulsan, Daejeon, Chungcheongnam-do, and Gangwon-do South Korea who were not specializing in physical education.

[Results]

The underweight group accounted for 21.16% of the population, the normal weight group comprised 69.71%, the overweight group was 6.09%, and the obese group accounted for 3.04%. The satisfaction rate of appearance was 56.16%, the dissatisfaction rate was 43.84%, and normal-weight students who were dissatisfied with their own appearance comprised 48.5%. The More obese students were more dissatisfied with their appearance. As a result of investigating eating attitudes, 37.75% of all subjects had a risk for an eating disorder, and 38.6% were normal weight but showed a risk for an eating disorder. More obese (BMI) subjects were at higher risk for an eating disorder.

[Conclusion]

The BMIs of the Korean female university students were lower than those of European and American Caucasian women students, but the dissatisfaction of Korean female university students with their appearances was greater than that of European and American students, indicating that more Korean female university students were suffering from an eating disorder. It is predicted that the incidence of eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, will rise in Korean women if there is no accurate understanding and measure to identify the high risk group for an eating disorder.     

Scaling Vo2 Peak in Obese and Non‐obese Girls

Objective: The conventional ratio method (milliliters O₂ per mass) typically is used to express Vo ₂ peak. The goal of the current study was to compare Vo ₂ peak of obese girls with normal‐weight girls by ratio and allometric scaling methods. Research Methods and Procedures: We compared Vo ₂ peak by ratio and allometric methods in 46 obese and 47 normal‐weight girls. Indirect calorimetry was used to measure Vo ₂ peak during either treadmill running or walking. Regression analysis was used to determine coefficients for mass and stature for each group with ANOVA used to compare data between groups. Results: The obese girls were taller and had higher values of body fatness (p ≤ 0.05). Absolute Vo ₂ peak (liters per minute) was similar between groups ; however Vo ₂ peak relative to mass was 50% lower (p ≤ 0.05) in the obese girls. When Vo ₂ peak (milliliters per minute per kilogram) and mass were correlated, r = ?0.48 was found in the obese group. Allometric scaling of logarithmic transformed stature and mass reduced this to r = ?0.002, thus eliminating the bias associated with the ratio method. Adjusting Vo ₂ peak allometrically scaled for mass, stature, and the combination of mass and stature reduced the difference between groups from 50% (ratio method) to 10% to 11% (p ≤ 0.05) with higher values found in the normal‐weight girls. Discussion: These results demonstrate the bias associated with the ratio method when comparing Vo ₂ peak in obese girls with Vo ₂ peak in normal‐weight girls. Allometric scaling eliminated the bias and thus may reflect a truer comparative response.     

Parent overweight predicts daughters' increase in BMI and disinhibited overeating from 5 to 13 years

Objective: To assess whether parental overweight status and disinhibited overeating are predictive of daughters’ accelerated weight gain and disinhibited overeating. Research Methods and Procedures: Participants were part of a longitudinal study of girls (N = 197) and their parents. Measured height and weight were used to calculate BMI [weight (kilograms)/height (meters)²]. Parents’ disinhibited eating behavior was assessed using the Eating Inventory. Girls’ disinhibited eating was assessed using a behavioral protocol to measure eating in the absence of hunger. Girls were classified based on parental overweight at study entry into four groups: neither, mother only, father only, or both parents overweight. Results: Girls with both parents overweight had the most rapid increases in BMI from 5 to 13 years of age; BMI increased most slowly among the neither parent overweight group, with intermediate increases in BMI among mother only and father only overweight groups. Daughters with both parents overweight at study entry were eight times more likely to be overweight at age 13, controlling for daughters’ weight at age 5. Girls with both parents overweight had higher levels of disinhibited eating across all ages than all other groups. Although girls in all parental weight status groups showed increases in disinhibited eating over time, girls with both parents overweight had larger increases in disinhibited eating over time compared with all other groups. Discussion: Girls growing up in families differing in parental overweight had divergent developmental trajectories for BMI and disinhibited overeating. Findings reveal the need to focus prevention efforts on overweight parents of young children.