Growth pattern and prevalence of obesity in affluent schoolchildren of Delhi

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of obesity in affluent schoolchildren of Delhi.

Design: This was a cross-sectional study covering over 4000 students. Anthropometric measurements and birth weights of all the students were recorded.

Setting and subjects: The study was carried out in a school catering to the affluent section of Indian society and included both boys and girls in the age range 4 to 17 years.

Results: The heights and weights of the children were almost similar to those of the National Center for Health Statistics standards, and were much above the values reported by the Indian National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau, which largely captures rural children belonging to lower socio-economic strata in India. Of the subjects studied, 22% were overweight and 6% were obese. Only 6% of these children had low birth weight.

Conclusion: The prevalence of obesity is rising among children because of their change in lifestyle. Children born with a birth weight of > or = 3 kg tended to have higher body mass index in their adolescent years and maybe consequently in their adult years. Nutrition education can play an important part in reducing the incidence of overweight/obesity and its associated complications.