Abstract
Background: During adolescence, a number of changes take place in growing children. Current study has been conducted to understand effect of sports training on the growth.
 Objective: The main objective of the study is to compare the anthropometric parameters in adolescent swimmers and non-swimmers. Methods: 61 boys (30 swimmers and 31non-swimmers) between age group12-17 years were selected for the study. Height, weight, biacromial breadth (BAB), bicristal breadth (BCB), mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (HC), sum of four skinfolds (SSF) namely triceps, biceps, subscapular and suprailiac, total leg length (TLL), sitting height (SH) and arm span (AS) were the anthropometric measurements taken. Independent sample t-test was used to study the difference between the two groups with p<0.05 as level of significance. Conclusion: As a response to training stimulus, the development of anthropometric parameters of swimmers are significantly different from non-swimmers. However, they follow the normal growth pattern like their non-swimming peers.
 
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Highlights
Adolescence is a period of drastic physical changes in human body and ranges from 10 to 19 years of age
Swimmers participating at competitive levels undergo intense training right from pre-pubertal years which has a major role to play in their tempo of growth and final adult body build and composition
The results of the present study show significant differences in height, biacromial breadth (BAB), bicristal breadth (BCB), mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), hip circumference (HC), total leg length (TLL) and arm span (AS) between adolescent swimmers and non-swimmers
Summary
Adolescence is a period of drastic physical changes in human body and ranges from 10 to 19 years of age. Some sports which require early specialization coupled with increased training load and intensity may consequentially affect the growth and pubertal development in athletes. Swimming is one such sport which requires specialisation and focussed training at relatively younger ages. Anthropometric tests and measurements are widely used as a significant tool for talent identification in sports to track developmental changes during adolescence and to study the effect of athletic training on growth. Such studies on Indian adolescents and swimmers are limited (3,4). They follow the normal growth pattern like their non-swimming peers
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