Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital, Heidelberg Institute of Global Health (HIGH), Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 130, Heidelberg, Germany.
Jiangsu Province Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Nanjing, China.
BMC Public Health. 2022 May 11;22(1):941. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-13302-w.
Early childhood overweight and obesity is a growing public health concern worldwide. Few recent studies have addressed how time trends varied by sociodemographic characteristics at the regional level using large and high-quality data. This study determines how time trends vary in the prevalence of early childhood overweight and obesity by age, gender, and migration background at the regional level.
We used a Kernel-density curve to describe the BMI distribution, and evaluated the trends of overweight and obesity by age, gender, and migration background using logistic regression.
Mean BMI and the overall prevalence of overweight and obesity increased among preschool children aged 4-6 years in the Rhine-Neckar County and the City of Heidelberg. After adjusting for age, sex, and migration background, trends of overweight significantly increased only among male children in the age 5 year group with migration background (P < 0.05), and an upward trend of obesity was observed only among male children in the age 5 year group and female children in the age 6 year group with migration background (P < 0.05).
BMI distribution as well as general prevalence of overweight and obesity are still increasing among preschool children. Children with migration backgrounds, particularly male children in the age 5 year groups and female children in the age 6 year group should be prioritized. Health promotion strategies for children with migration backgrounds will help address this challenge.
儿童期超重和肥胖是全球日益严重的公共卫生问题。最近很少有研究利用大量高质量数据来探讨区域层面上社会人口特征的时间趋势变化。本研究旨在确定在区域层面上，按年龄、性别和移民背景划分，儿童期超重和肥胖的流行率随时间的变化趋势。
我们使用核密度曲线来描述 BMI 分布，并使用逻辑回归评估按年龄、性别和移民背景划分的超重和肥胖趋势。
在莱茵内卡尔县和海德堡市，4-6 岁的学龄前儿童的平均 BMI 和超重肥胖的总体流行率均有所增加。在调整了年龄、性别和移民背景后，只有具有移民背景的 5 岁年龄组的男童中，超重的趋势显著增加（P<0.05），而具有移民背景的 5 岁年龄组的男童和 6 岁年龄组的女童中，肥胖的趋势则呈上升趋势（P<0.05）。
学龄前儿童的 BMI 分布以及超重肥胖的总体流行率仍在上升。具有移民背景的儿童，尤其是 5 岁年龄组的男童和 6 岁年龄组的女童，应成为优先关注的对象。针对具有移民背景的儿童的健康促进策略将有助于应对这一挑战。
