Abstract

To study the factors related to childhood obesity, 75 subjects were selected as an obese group and 75 subjects were selected as a control group according to their obesity index and BMI among the 583 children of 5th and 6th grade in elementary school in Seoul. For each subject, skinfold thickness was measured, information on the characteristics of family, nutrient intake and activity time of the subjects were obtained by questionnarie. The results were summarized as following: 1) Parents' obesity indices of obese group were significantly higher than those of control group(Father's Obesity Index : P<0.01, Mother's Obesity Index : P<0.05). 2) Questions about eating rate and behavior showed that subjects in obese group were significantly faster in their eating rate(p<0.05) and always more eager to eat food(p<0.001) compared to control group. 3) Dietary intake data showed that average daily intake of all the nutrients exceeded Korean recommended dietary allowances for the age group. In female children, fat intakes of obese group were significantly higher than control group(P<0.05). There was no such significant difference in male subjects. 4) Activity time record of subjects reveal that there was a trend for males to spend more time in moderate and high activity and less time in light activity compared to females. Subjects in obese group spent significantly more time for light activity(P<0.001) and significantly less time for moderate activity (P<0.001) compared to subjects in control group. The difference of activity was more pronounced in male subjects. 5) Correlation matrix of the variables showed that obesity index, BMI, and skinfold thickness of the subjects were highly correlated with each other. These indices were positively correlated to parent's obesity indices and the time spent for light activity, but negatively correlated to the time spent for moderate activity. Nutrient intakes were not significantly correlated to obesity indices. Form the results shown above, although both obese and control groups are from high socioeconomic class, obese children tended to come from family with fat parents. They eat fast and are always eager to eat. They tend to eat more fat but are very different from controls in nutrient intake. Obese children are significantly lower in their actinity compared to controls. So, for the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity, it seems to be more important to increase their activity levels.

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