Secular Trends of Underweight, Overweight, and Obesity in Children and Adolescents from Ukraine.

Katarzyna Dereń,Serhiy Nyankovskyy,Justyna Wyszyńska,Marta Yatsula,Olena Nyankovska,Marek Sobolewski,Artur Mazur,Edyta Łuszczki

doi:10.3390/ijerph18063302

Abstract

Overweight and obesity, as well as underweight in children and adolescents, pose a significant public health issue. This study aimed to investigate the secular trend of the incidence of underweight, overweight, and obesity in children from Ukraine in 2013/2014 and 2018/2019. The studies were conducted in randomly selected primary and secondary schools in Ukraine. In total, 13,447 children (6468 boys and 6979 girls) participated in the study in 2013/2014 and 18,144 children (8717 boys and 9427 girls) participated in 2018/2019. Measurements of body weight and height were performed in triplicate. Underweight, overweight, and obesity were diagnosed according to the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO). In the group of girls, a significant difference between 2013/2014 and 2018/2019 measurements was found only among 7-year-olds. The percentage of girls at this age exceeding the body mass index (BMI) norm was lower in the 2018/2019 study. In boys, a significant difference was also found in 7-year-olds, and, as in girls, a lower share of overweight and obesity was found in 2018/2019. But for the ages of 12, 13, and 15, the significant differences had a different character—more overweight or obese boys were found in the 2018/2019 study. The proportion of underweight children was similar for the majority of age groups in both genders and did not differ in a statistically significant way.

Highlights

Childhood obesity is a major public health problem
Obesity in children and adolescents significantly increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular and liver conditions, which are likely to persist into adulthood, leading to long-term health impairment and increased morbidity and mortality in adults [5]
They may result from the evolving definition of overweight and obesity in children, different age ranges used in studies on the prevalence of overweight and obesity, different methods of selecting the study group, and the applied statistical methods [17]

Summary

Introduction

The prevalence of obesity among children is increasing and may negatively affect their immediate health [1,2]. For age can have serious consequences for a child’s development, health, and well-being. It may reflect malnutrition and result from poor nutritional practices or various medical conditions [4]. Obesity in children and adolescents significantly increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular and liver conditions, which are likely to persist into adulthood, leading to long-term health impairment and increased morbidity and mortality in adults [5]. In addition to the immediate and long-term adverse health consequences, childhood overweight and obesity have a negative impact on children’s self-esteem, confidence, and academic performance [6]

Objectives

Discussion

Conclusion