한국 소아 청소년의 비만과 대사이상 지표들에 관한 연구 = Obesity and Metabolic Parameters in Korean School-aged Children and Adolescents

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Purpose: Obesity and metabolic syndrome in the pediatric population have become major health concerns; however, Korean nationwide data are limited. The lack of a clear definition of child obesity is a problem worldwide. We performed a pilot study of Korean school-aged children and adolescents to determine the prevalence of obesity according to various 4 parameters and to identify associations with socioeconomic parameters and metabolic risk factors.
Methods: Between January 2010 and March 2011, 1,110 students from 11 Korean provinces ranging in age from 6 to 18 years, including 574 boys and 536 girls, were enrolled. Weight, height, and waist circumference were measured; fasting blood samples were collected; and socioeconomic factors were assessed.
Results: The prevalences of obesity in boys and girls according to body mass index (BMI) were 5.7% and 2.1%, and according to obesity index were 12.7% and 11.4%, respectively. The male to female obesity ratio was higher according to waist circumference (57.9% : 36.1%) and waist circumference-to-height ratio (WHTR) (19.0% : 24.8%). The best obesity index was WHTR, and the proportion of participants with triglyceride-to-HDL cholesterol ratio ≥3 was 6.8%. The prevalence of hypertriglyceridemic waist phenotype was 11.8%. Overweight and obesity was higher in rural than in urban areas.
Conclusion: The optimal cutoff for the definition of obesity in school-aged students has not been determined. Therefore, the physical characteristics of children including waist circumference and lipid profiles should be assessed according to age.