Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study
BackgroundChildhood overweight (OW) and obesity (OB) have become a serious public health concern worldwide. The objective of this study is to investigate the association between the levels of birth weight (BW) and OB and central OB in Chinese primary school children.MethodsA school-based longitudina...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-03-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1469226/full |
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| author | Yi Lin Richard Rankin Stuart McDonald Xiao-Yong Li Feng Wang Si-Jia Wang Qing-Hai Gong Feng Tong |
| author_facet | Yi Lin Richard Rankin Stuart McDonald Xiao-Yong Li Feng Wang Si-Jia Wang Qing-Hai Gong Feng Tong |
| author_sort | Yi Lin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundChildhood overweight (OW) and obesity (OB) have become a serious public health concern worldwide. The objective of this study is to investigate the association between the levels of birth weight (BW) and OB and central OB in Chinese primary school children.MethodsA school-based longitudinal study was conducted from 2016 to 2019. Information of children and parents were gained from both children and parents’ questionnaires. Longitudinal anthropometric data were obtained from annual health check. BW (kg) was categorized into 4 groups [<3.0, 3.0–3.4, 3.5–3.9 and ≥ 4.0 (macrosomia)]. Normal weight, OW and OB were defined based on sex-specific and age-specific body mass index (BMI). Central OB was identified using sex-specific waist-to-height ratio (WHtR).ResultsAround 14.5 and 15.6% of 1,204 children had low BW (<3.0 kg) and macrosomia, respectively. The overall rate of OB and central OB at 7–10 years were 10.4 and 28.3%, respectively. Linear-shaped relationships were observed between BW and anthropometric values in both sexes at 7–10 years and 11–13 years. A J-shaped relationship was found between BW and WHtR in boys at 11–13 years. Higher BW status were associated with increased adjusted odds of OB in children (3.5–3.9: OR: 1.5, CI 95%: 1.1–2.0; macrosomia OR: 1.4, CI 95%: 1.0–2.0).ConclusionHigher levels of BW (≥ 3.5 kg) were associated with an increased risk of OB in children, but not central OB. The results can support public health specialists for future research and improvement of strategies for childhood obesity prevention. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-494d476240bf4e0bbde6b4bb232f241e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
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| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-494d476240bf4e0bbde6b4bb232f241e2025-08-20T03:39:56ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652025-03-011310.3389/fpubh.2025.14692261469226Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal studyYi Lin0Richard Rankin1Stuart McDonald2Xiao-Yong Li3Feng Wang4Si-Jia Wang5Qing-Hai Gong6Feng Tong7Center for Health Economics, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaDepartment of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Nottingham, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaCenter for Health Economics, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaYinzhou District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaNingbo Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaNingbo Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaNingbo Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaNingbo Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, ChinaBackgroundChildhood overweight (OW) and obesity (OB) have become a serious public health concern worldwide. The objective of this study is to investigate the association between the levels of birth weight (BW) and OB and central OB in Chinese primary school children.MethodsA school-based longitudinal study was conducted from 2016 to 2019. Information of children and parents were gained from both children and parents’ questionnaires. Longitudinal anthropometric data were obtained from annual health check. BW (kg) was categorized into 4 groups [<3.0, 3.0–3.4, 3.5–3.9 and ≥ 4.0 (macrosomia)]. Normal weight, OW and OB were defined based on sex-specific and age-specific body mass index (BMI). Central OB was identified using sex-specific waist-to-height ratio (WHtR).ResultsAround 14.5 and 15.6% of 1,204 children had low BW (<3.0 kg) and macrosomia, respectively. The overall rate of OB and central OB at 7–10 years were 10.4 and 28.3%, respectively. Linear-shaped relationships were observed between BW and anthropometric values in both sexes at 7–10 years and 11–13 years. A J-shaped relationship was found between BW and WHtR in boys at 11–13 years. Higher BW status were associated with increased adjusted odds of OB in children (3.5–3.9: OR: 1.5, CI 95%: 1.1–2.0; macrosomia OR: 1.4, CI 95%: 1.0–2.0).ConclusionHigher levels of BW (≥ 3.5 kg) were associated with an increased risk of OB in children, but not central OB. The results can support public health specialists for future research and improvement of strategies for childhood obesity prevention.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1469226/fullbirth weightoverweightgeneral obesitycentral obesitychildhood |
| spellingShingle | Yi Lin Richard Rankin Stuart McDonald Xiao-Yong Li Feng Wang Si-Jia Wang Qing-Hai Gong Feng Tong Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study Frontiers in Public Health birth weight overweight general obesity central obesity childhood |
| title | Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study |
| title_full | Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study |
| title_fullStr | Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study |
| title_short | Children’s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children: a 4-year longitudinal study |
| title_sort | children s birth weight and the risk of general obesity and central obesity in primary school children a 4 year longitudinal study |
| topic | birth weight overweight general obesity central obesity childhood |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1469226/full |
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