Lin Yi, Rankin Richard, McDonald Stuart, Li Xiao-Yong, Wang Feng, Wang Si-Jia, Gong Qing-Hai, Tong Feng
Center for Health Economics, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China.
Department of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Nottingham, Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China.
Front Public Health. 2025 Mar 24;13:1469226. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1469226. eCollection 2025.
Childhood 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.
A 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).
Around 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).
Higher 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.
儿童超重和肥胖已成为全球严重的公共卫生问题。本研究的目的是调查中国小学生出生体重水平与肥胖及中心性肥胖之间的关联。
于2016年至2019年开展了一项基于学校的纵向研究。通过儿童和家长问卷获取儿童及其家长的信息。每年的健康检查获取纵向人体测量数据。出生体重（kg）分为4组[<3.0、3.0 - 3.4、3.5 - 3.9和≥4.0（巨大儿）]。根据性别和年龄特异性体重指数（BMI）定义正常体重、超重和肥胖。使用性别特异性腰高比（WHtR）确定中心性肥胖。
1204名儿童中，分别约有14.5%和15.6%的儿童出生体重低（<3.0 kg）和为巨大儿。7至10岁儿童肥胖和中心性肥胖的总体发生率分别为10.4%和28.3%。在7至10岁和11至13岁的两性中，出生体重与人体测量值之间均观察到线性关系。在11至13岁的男孩中，出生体重与腰高比之间发现呈J形关系。较高的出生体重状态与儿童肥胖调整后的比值增加相关（3.5 - 3.9：比值比：1.5，95%置信区间：1.1 - 2.0；巨大儿比值比：1.4，95%置信区间：1.0 - 2.0）。
较高的出生体重水平（≥3.5 kg）与儿童肥胖风险增加相关，但与中心性肥胖无关。这些结果可为公共卫生专家今后的研究及改进儿童肥胖预防策略提供支持。
