Sexual dimorphism in body composition changes during the pubertal period: as shown by French-Canadian children.

Size and velocity growth curves of stature to represent skeletal growth, lean arm circumference to represent muscle growth, and the sum of three skinfolds to represent fat tissue changes, are presented for a longitudinal study of Montreal school-age chidren. Both a chronological age scale, and one relative to the individual ages of peak growth velocity in stature, are used. Intercorrelations between the various components are tabulated for age groups based on the two scales. The three skinfolds are also analyzed separately. The results show that such simple anthropometric measures can be usefully taken to represent the growth of different body components. Longitudinal analysis reveals that, whereas the relationship of muscular to statural growth in boys is purely maturational, it is not so for girls, and that the different skinfolds show complex sexual differences in growth during the pubertal period.