Obesity and Aerobic Fitness among Urban Public School Students in Elementary,Middle, and High School |
| |
Authors: | B. Ruth Clark M. Leanne White Nathaniel K. Royer Tamara L. Burlis Nicholas C. DuPont Michael Wallendorf Susan B. Racette |
| |
Affiliation: | 1. Program in Physical Therapy, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America.; 2. Saint Louis Public Schools, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America.; 3. Division of Biostatistics, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America.; National Institute of Health, ITALY, |
| |
Abstract: | Aims and ObjectivesTo assess the prevalence of cardiovascular disease risk among urban public school students through a collaborative school district and university partnership.MethodsChildren and adolescents in grades K-12 from 24 urban public schools participated in measurements of height, weight, and other health metrics during the 2009–2010 school year. Body mass index (BMI) percentiles and z-scores were computed for 4673 students. President’s Challenge 1-mile endurance run was completed by 1075 students ages 9–19 years. Maximal oxygen consumption (⩒O2max) was predicted using an age-, sex-, and BMI-specific formula to determine health-related fitness. Resting blood pressure (BP) was assessed in 1467 students. Regression analyses were used to compare BMI z-scores, fitness, and age- and sex-specific BP percentiles across grade levels. Chi-square tests were used to explore the effect of sex and grade-level on health-related outcomes.ResultsBased on BMI, 19.8% were categorized as overweight and 24.4% were obese. Included in the obese category were 454 students (9.7% of sample) classified with severe obesity. Using FITNESSGRAM criteria, 50.2% of students did not achieve the Healthy Fitness Zone (HFZ); the proportion of students in the Needs Improvement categories increased from elementary to middle school to high school. Male students demonstrated higher fitness than female students, with 61.4% of boys and only 35.4% of girls meeting HFZ standards. Elevated BP was observed among 24% of 1467 students assessed. Systolic and diastolic BP z-scores revealed low correlation with BMI z-scores.ConclusionsA community-university collaboration identified obesity, severe obesity, overweight, and low aerobic fitness to be common risk factors among urban public school students. |
| |
Keywords: | |
|
|