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J Sch Health. 2022 Apr;92(4):368-375. doi: 10.1111/josh.13138. Epub 2022 Feb 1.
School environments are important to consider for children's health. This study aims to determine if childhood peer bullying and school connectedness are associated with adolescent adiposity.
A total of 3377 children from the age 9 child interview of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study had self-reported bullying and school connectedness data at age 9, height and weight measured at ages 9 and 15, and waist circumference was measured during an age 15 home visit. Linear regression models estimated the association between bullying and school connectedness and (1) change in BMI between age 9 and 15, and (2) waist circumference at age 15. Models were stratified by sex.
Girls had larger increases in body mass index (BMI) when experiencing low school connectedness, and students that experienced both bullying and low school connectedness had larger increases in BMI. Girls had larger waist circumferences for increased levels of bullying, low connectedness, and experiencing both.
School environments may play a role in the development of increased adiposity and there may be gender differences in the types of factors that are important to consider, particularly for central adiposity. Positive and engaging school environments can help support students' development and healthy behaviors.
学校环境对儿童健康很重要。本研究旨在确定儿童时期的同伴欺凌和学校归属感是否与青少年肥胖有关。
共有 3377 名来自脆弱家庭和儿童福利研究的 9 岁儿童访谈的儿童，在 9 岁时报告了欺凌和学校归属感数据，在 9 岁和 15 岁时测量了身高和体重，在 15 岁的家访期间测量了腰围。线性回归模型估计了欺凌和学校归属感与（1）9 岁至 15 岁期间 BMI 的变化，以及（2）15 岁时的腰围之间的关联。按性别对模型进行分层。
经历低学校归属感的女孩 BMI 增加幅度更大，同时经历欺凌和低学校归属感的学生 BMI 增加幅度更大。随着欺凌、归属感低以及两者兼而有之的程度增加，女孩的腰围也会增加。
学校环境可能在肥胖程度增加的发展中发挥作用，并且在考虑重要因素的类型方面可能存在性别差异，尤其是对于中心性肥胖。积极参与的学校环境可以帮助支持学生的发展和健康行为。
