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- Moraeus, Lotta, 1981, et al.
(author)
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Age and time effects on children’s lifestyle and overweight in Sweden
- 2015
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In: BMC Public Health. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2458. ; 15
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background High physical activity, low sedentary behavior and low consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages can be markers of a healthy lifestyle. We aim to observe longitudinal changes and secular trends in these lifestyle variables as well as in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in 7-to-9-year-old schoolchildren related to gender and socioeconomic position. Methods Three cross-sectional surveys were carried out on schoolchildren in grades 1 and 2 (7-to-9-year-olds) in 2008 (n = 833), 2010 (n = 1085), and 2013 (n = 1135). Information on children’s level of physical activity, sedentary behavior, diet, and parent’s education level was collected through parental questionnaires. Children’s height and weight were also measured. Longitudinal measurements were carried out on a subsample (n = 678) which was included both in 2008 (7-to-9-year-olds) and 2010 (9-to-11-year-olds). BMI was used to classify children into overweight (including obese) and obese based on the International Obesity Task Force reference. Questionnaire reported maternal education level was used as a proxy for socioeconomic position (SEP). Results Longitudinally, consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages ≥4 days/week increased from 7% to 16% in children with low SEP. Overall, sedentary behavior >4 hours/day doubled from 14% to 31% (p < 0.001) and sport participation ≥3 days/week increased from 17% to 37% (p < 0.001). No longitudinal changes in overweight or obesity were detected. In the repeated cross-sectional observations sedentary behavior increased (p = 0.001) both in high and low SEP groups, and overweight increased from 13.8% to 20.9% in girls (p < 0.05). Overall, children with high SEP were less-often overweight (p < 0.001) and more physically active (p < 0.001) than children with low SEP. Conclusions Children’s lifestyles changed longitudinally in a relatively short period of two years. Secular trends were also observed, indicating that 7–9-year-olds could be susceptible to actions that promote a healthy lifestyle. Socioeconomic differences were consistent and even increasing when it came to sugar-sweetened beverage consumption. Decreasing the socioeconomic gap in weight status and related lifestyle variables should be prioritized. Primary school is an arena where most children could be reached and where their lifestyle could be influenced by health promoting activities.
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| 4. |
- Moraeus, Lotta, 1981, et al.
(author)
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Multi-level influences on childhood obesity in Sweden: societal factors, parental determinants and child's lifestyle
- 2012
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In: International Journal of Obesity. - London, United Kingdom : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0307-0565 .- 1476-5497. ; 36:7, s. 969-976
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Swedish school children living in rural areas and in areas with low education are at excess risk of becoming overweight. This study examines influences of societal and individual characteristics (children and their parents) on prevalence of overweight and obesity, in a national sample of 7-9-year-old children. METHOD: Anthropometric and lifestyle data were collected in a nationally representative sample of 3636 Swedish children. Overweight and obesity (International Obesity Task Force (IOTF)) data were analyzed in relation to lifestyle factors, parental weight, education and breast-feeding. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight was 15.6% including 2.6% obese. Urbanization level and parental characteristics (weight status and education) were related to risk of overweight. Overall less favorable lifestyle characteristics were observed in rural areas and for children of low/medium educated mothers. Boys had greater risk of obesity in semi-urban and rural areas but this was not true for girls. For children's overweight, the living area effect was attenuated in multivariate analysis, while there was an association with origin of parents, high parental weight and medium maternal education. For obesity, the living area effect remained in boys while having two non-Nordic parents predicted obesity in girls. Parental weight status was associated with obesity in both girls and boys. CONCLUSION: Individual and societal factors influence children's weight status, and parental weight status is a strong determinant. Including overweight and obese parents in future health promoting interventions could be a strategy to prevent children from becoming overweight, but identifying those parents may prove difficult. To ensure reaching children with the greatest needs, targeting high risk areas might be a more effective approach.
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- Moraeus, Lotta, 1981, et al.
(author)
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Stable prevalence of obesity in Swedish schoolchildren from 2008 to 2013 but widening socio-economic gap in girls.
- 2014
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In: Acta Paediatrica. - : Wiley. - 0803-5253. ; 103:12, s. 1277-1284
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- AIM: The aim of this study was to follow the 5-year prevalence of overweight, obesity and thinness in 7- to 9-year-old children in West Sweden and to investigate whether trends differed according to gender and socio-economic status. METHODS: Cross-sectional anthropometric measurements of three cohorts in grades one and two were performed in 3492 7- to 9-year-old children in 2008, 2010 and 2013. For body mass index classification, the IOTF/Cole and WHO 2007 references were used. Percentage of inhabitants with high education in the school area was used for socio-economic classification. RESULTS: Between 2008, 2010 and 2013, the overall time-trends in overweight 17.7%, 19.3% and 18.8%, obesity 3.2%, 3.3% and 3.1%, and thinness 6.5%, 4.7% and 6.9%, respectively, were fairly stable using the IOTF/Cole references. Thinness defined by the Cole reference increased in girls. The socio-economic gradient for overweight and obesity was clear by both references, but using the IOTF reference, the gap increased for obesity among girls (p = 0.024). No significant trends were observed with the WHO reference. CONCLUSION: The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity was stable over 5 years, but we detected growing inequality in obesity and increasing prevalence of thinness in girls. With these regionally representative data, we can draw conclusions about West Sweden, despite an absence of continued national surveillance.
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- Nilsen, Bente B., 1960-, et al.
(author)
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Using different growth references to measure thinness and overweight among Swedish primary school children showed considerable variations
- 2016
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In: Acta Paediatrica. - West Sussex, United Kingdom : Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Inc.. - 0803-5253 .- 1651-2227. ; 105:10, s. 1158-1165
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Aim: The study compared how four different growth references determined the prevalence of thinness and overweight, based on height and weight measurements from a nationally representative sample of Swedish children from seven to nine years of age.Methods: The height and weight measurements of 4,518 Swedish schoolchildren aged seven to nine years were carried out in 2008 using a standardised protocol. The prevalence of different degrees of thinness and overweight were calculated using international growth references from the World Health Organization, the International Obesity Task Force and two Swedish growth references from Werner and Karlberg.Results: Depending on which growth reference we used, the prevalence of different degrees of thinness varied from 7.5%-16.9% for the boys and 6.9%-13.7% for the girls, while for the prevalence of overweight, including obesity and severe obesity, varied from 16.5%-25.7% for the boys and 18.2-25.2% for the girls. There were also significant gender differences depending on the growth reference we used.Conclusion: Using four different growth references, two international and two Swedish, produced wide variations in the prevalence of thinness and overweight, together with significant gender differences. In the absence of a global definition, we need both national and international growth references.
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