Do substantial BMI reduction episodes among Swedish schoolchildren have any impact on their final height?

• AIM: This study investigated whether substantial body mass index (BMI) reductions in Swedish schoolchildren aged 7-19 years, caused by disease, healthy or unhealthy behaviour, had any impact on their final height.METHODS: We used height and weight data on 6,572 subjects from two nationally representative longitudinal samples of Swedish children born in 1973 and 1981. These provided information on their final height and any BMI reduction episodes.RESULTS: Of the 6,572 subjects (50.9% boys), among individuals with information on final height, 1,118 had a BMI reduction of 5% and less than 10%, and 346 had at least one substantial BMI reduction of 10% of more. On a group level, there was no statistically significant difference in the final height of individuals with BMI reductions of 10% or more and those without. The findings were independent of age and the subject's BMI at the start of the reduction episode. However, there were a number of cases where a substantial BMI reduction probably had an impact on the subject's final height.CONCLUSION: Our study found no evidence that a substantial BMI reduction had any impact on final height on a group level, but further analyses of specific case studies are necessary to determine whether substantial BMI reduction might have an impact on final height.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Pediatrik (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Pediatrics (hsv//eng)

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskap -- Folkhälsovetenskap, global hälsa, socialmedicin och epidemiologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Body Mass Index reduction

final height

longitudinal study

schoolchildren

weight loss

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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