Freedman David S, Khan Laura Kettel, Serdula Mary K, Dietz William H, Srinivasan Sathanur R, Berenson Gerald S
CDC Mailstop K-26, 4770 Buford Highway, Atlanta GA 30341-3717, USA.
Obes Res. 2005 May;13(5):928-35. doi: 10.1038/oby.2005.107.
The possibility that there are racial differences in the patterns of BMI (kilograms per meter squared) change throughout life has not been examined. For example, the high prevalence of obesity among black women could result from a higher prevalence of obesity among black girls or because normal-weight black girls experience larger BMI increases in adolescence or adulthood than do their white counterparts. Therefore, we examined the tracking of childhood BMI into adulthood in a biracial (36% black) sample.
Five- to 14-year-old children (2392) were followed for (mean) 17 years. Childhood overweight was defined as BMI > or = 95th percentile, and adult obesity was defined as BMI > or = 30 kg/m(2).
The tracking of childhood BMI differed between whites and blacks. Among overweight children, 65% of white girls vs. 84% of black girls became obese adults, and predictive values among boys were 71% (whites) vs. 82% (blacks). These racial differences reflected contrasting patterns in the rate of BMI change. Although the initial BMI of black children was not higher than that of white children, BMI increases with age were larger among black girls and overweight black boys than among their white counterparts. In contrast, relatively thin (BMI < 50th percentile) white boys were more likely to become overweight adults than were their black counterparts.
These findings emphasize the black/white differences in BMI changes with age. Because of the adult health consequences of childhood-onset obesity, early prevention should be given additional emphasis.
尚未对一生中体重指数（千克每平方米）变化模式是否存在种族差异进行研究。例如，黑人女性肥胖率较高可能是因为黑人女孩肥胖率较高，或者是因为体重正常的黑人女孩在青春期或成年期体重指数的增加幅度大于白人女孩。因此，我们在一个包含两种族（36%为黑人）的样本中研究了儿童期体重指数到成年期的追踪情况。
对2392名5至14岁儿童进行了（平均）17年的跟踪研究。儿童超重定义为体重指数≥第95百分位数，成人肥胖定义为体重指数≥30千克/平方米。
白人儿童和黑人儿童在儿童期体重指数的追踪情况存在差异。在超重儿童中，65%的白人女孩和84%的黑人女孩成年后肥胖，男孩中的预测值分别为71%（白人）和82%（黑人）。这些种族差异反映了体重指数变化率的不同模式。虽然黑人儿童的初始体重指数并不高于白人儿童，但黑人女孩和超重黑人男孩的体重指数随年龄增长的幅度大于白人同龄人。相比之下，相对较瘦（体重指数<第50百分位数）的白人男孩比黑人男孩更有可能成年后超重。
这些发现强调了体重指数随年龄变化的黑白差异。由于儿童期肥胖对成人健康有影响，应更加重视早期预防。
