ASSOCIATION BETWEEN BODY COMPOSITION, SOMATOTYPE AND SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS IN CHILEAN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS AT DIFFERENT SCHOOL LEVELS

Submandibular Skinfold Thickness Cut-off Values in Relation to Body Mass Index and Percentage Body Fat Among Chilean Adolescents

The present study evaluates submandibular skinfold (SMS) cutoff values to estimate excess weight for BMI and percentage body fat (%BF) among Chilean adolescents. The results show an optimal area under the cutoff curve value of 83% among girls and 91% in boys to estimate SMS concerning %BF and BMI. The SMS cutoff value estimating obesity by %BF was 10 mm among girls and 9 mm among boys, 10 mm among girls, and 7 mm among boys by BMI. Our results showed that SMS is significantly associated with anthropometric parameters for obesity.

Somatotype altitudinal variation and its relationship with the nutritional status of children in the Jujuy province, Argentina

OBJECTIVES

To study the somatotype variations adjusted by altitude, age, sex, and BMI categories, and to assess the health status of the children population.

METHODS

A sample of 460 children aged 8-13 years was assessed in a cross-sectional study conducted on anthropometric measurements between 2011 and 2015. Data were categorized into two age groups: Group 8-10, Group 11-13 and two altitudes: Highland (>2000 masl), lowland (<2000 masl). The somatotypic profile was determined by the Heath and Carter's study method and the Body Mass Index was used to assess children nutritional status. Generalized linear latent variable models (GLLVM) were performed to test the association between somatotype and geographic altitude. Individual age-sex specific somatotypes were plotted in a two-dimension somatochart, and group dispersion was displayed by the somatotype attitudinal mean.

RESULTS

The sample has an overall endomorph-mesomorph body type, exhibiting different patterns when altitude and sex were considered. The GLLVM showed that the whole somatotype was different by altitude. Highland children occupied central to endomorphic-mesomorphic places in the somatochart with lower variation. In both altitudes, girls exhibited higher endomorphy than boys. Several discrepancies between the BMI categorization and the somatotype were observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Jujenean children show differential body patterns across geographic altitude which exhibit age and sex variations. Children have a differential tendency to a fat mass gain. The BMI showed some inconsistencies with somatotype, leading to a misclassification of the child nutritional status, this highlights the importance of not to treat the BMI in isolation but with other determinants of the health status.

Socioeconomic status impacts cognitive and socioemotional processes in healthy ageing

Socioeconomic status (SES) negatively impacts cognitive and executive functioning in older adults, yet its effects on socioemotional abilities have not been studied in this population. Also, evidence on neurocognitive processes associated with ageing primarily comes from Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic (WEIRD) populations, hindering the generalization of findings to persons from upper-middle- and low-middle-income countries, such as those of Latin America. Here, we compared the performance of low- and high-SES older adults from Argentina in cognitive state, executive functions, social cognition (emotion recognition and theory of mind), and counter-empathic social emotions (envy and Schadenfreude; displeasure at others' fortune and pleasure at others' misfortune, respectively). Subsequently, we developed a path analysis to test the relationship among those variables in a theoretically plausible model and tested the main paths via multiple regression analyses. Relative to the high-SES group, low-SES older adults showed poorer performance on all assessed domains. Convergent evidence from covariance analysis, path analysis, and linear regressions suggested that low-SES impact on socioemotional processes was not primary but mediated by cognitive and executive impairment. These findings offer the first characterization of SES impacts on cognitive and socioemotional processes in a non-WEIRD population and have relevant equity-related implications for brain health.

Association between children and adolescents’ body composition with family income

ABSTRACT Objective To evaluate the association between children and adolescents’ body composition with family income. Methods Cross-sectional study, participants between 5 and 19 years were included. A standardized questionnaire assessed socioeconomic variables. The outcome variables were z-score of Body Mass Index and bioimpedance parameters (skeletal muscle mass, fat-free mass, and fat percentage) and predictor variables (age, sex, race, place of residence, father’s education, birth weight and breastfeeding) were analyzed using the quantile regression model and data from the 50th percentile are presented. The tests were bidirectional and the differences were considered significant with p<0.05. Results Among the 529 participants included, 284 (53.6%) were female and the mean age was 11.41±3.9 years. The Body Mass Index z-score was the only outcome that did not show differences between sexes (p=0.158). In the crude model, lower family income was associated with lower skeletal muscle mass (Difference=-7.70; 95% CI -9.32 to -5.89), p<0.001), lower fat-free mass (Difference= -13.40; 95% CI -16.40 to -10.39, p<0.001) and the lowest percentage of fat was associated with lower family income (Difference= -5.01, 95% CI -9.91 to -0.11, p=0.027). The z-score of BMI was not associated with family income. Conclusion Family income is directly associated with lower fat-free mass, fat percentage, and skeletal muscle mass in children and adolescents.

Secular Change in Body Size and Somatotype of Indonesian Children aged 7–15 Years (1999–2019)

BACKGROUND: Secular changes assessment can help identifying the quality of health, wealth, and nutrition among populations and provide suggestions for policymakers. AIM: To examine the secular changes in weight, height, body mass index, and somatotype in Indonesian children between 1999 and 2019. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 1999 and 2019 on 2021 children aged 7–15 years in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Anthropometric measurements including height, weight, humerus and femur breadths, circumferences of upper arm and calf; skinfold thickness of triceps, subscapular, suprailiac, and calf were measured. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated as kg/m2. Somatotype components were defined by the Carter-Heath method. Statistical analyses used were three-ways ANOVA and least significant difference post hoc tests. RESULTS: Significant differences for boys and girls were found for height, weight, BMI, and three components of somatotype across the 2-time points. The boys in period 2019 were the tallest and girls were the heaviest, and for BMI, the highest value was observed in 2019 (girls). The children in the 1999 period had somatotype values 3.3 - 3.3 - 3.7 (boys) and 3.9 - 3.0 - 3.5 (girls), while in the 2019 period the somatotype values for boys were 3.5 - 4.5 - 3.0 and 4.3 - 4.1 - 2.4 for girls. CONCLUSION: In general, based on the order of age, there is a similar pattern between children in the two periods. Among Indonesian children from 1999 to 2019, there were positive trends in weight, BMI, endomorph, and mesomorph components, whereas a negative trend for the ectomorph component.

2018 Chilean Physical Activity Report Card for Children and Adolescents: Full Report and International Comparisons

BACKGROUND

The study summarizes the findings of the 2018 Chilean Report Card (RC) on Physical Activity (PA) for Children and Adolescents and compares the results with the first Chilean RC and with other countries from the Global Matrix 3.0.

METHODS

A Research Work Group using a standardized methodology from the Global Matrix 3.0 awarded grades for 13 PA-related indicators based on the percentage of compliance for defined benchmarks. Different public data sets, government reports, and papers informed the indicators.

RESULTS

The grades assigned were for (1) "behaviors that contribute to overall PA levels": overall PA, D-; organized sport participation, D-; active play, INC; and active transportation, F; (2) "factors associated with cardiometabolic risk": sedentary behavior, C-; overweight and obesity, F; fitness, D; sleep, INC; and (3) "factors that influence PA": family and peers, F; school, D; inclusion, INC; community and built environment, B; government strategies and investments, B-.

CONCLUSIONS

Chile's grades remained low compared with the first RC. On the positive side, Chile is advancing in environmental and policy aspects. Our findings indicate that the implementation of new strategies should be developed through collaboration between different sectors to maximize effective investments for increasing PA and decreasing sedentary time among children and adolescents in Chile.

External skeletal robustness and adiposity in adolescents of low socioeconomic status: A cross-sectional analysis of body composition

OBJECTIVES

External skeletal robustness has been decreasing in children, potentially due to a lack of physical activity and the increased prevalence of obesity. However, whether socioeconomic status (SES) influences external skeletal robustness in adolescents has not yet been examined.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was performed to examine 370 Chilean adolescents (16.15 ± 1.01 years old) recruited from distinct educational establishments. Body fat percentage (BF%) was evaluated using Ellis' equations for Hispanic children. Obesity was defined as ≥25 BF% in males and ≥ 30 BF% in females. External skeletal robustness was obtained by measuring the humerus biepicondylar width and height (Frame-Index). SES was obtained through the ESOMAR survey.

RESULTS

Females exhibited significantly greater BF% and lower Frame-Index values than males (P < .001). Obese adolescents (by BF%) had greater Frame-Index values than non-obese adolescents (P < .001). Females of medium-high SES had significantly lower BF% and Frame-Index values than females of medium and medium-low SES. BF% had a positive correlation with Frame-Index values in all SES groups studied, except in males of medium-high SES. As SES decreased, the correlation increased in both sexes, but overall, the correlation was greater in females than males.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this investigation suggest that obesity increases external skeletal robustness in adolescents. Additionally, lower SES corresponded to higher BF% and Frame-Index values. Therefore, modern conditions that influence the prevalence of obesity in adolescence could be affecting bone health in adolescents, primarily in females of medium-low SES.

Nutritional transition in schoolchildren from Tucumán, Argentina: A cross-sectional analysis of nutritional status and body composition

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this article was to describe the nutritional status and body composition of schoolchildren from Tucumán (Argentina) and analyze variations according to sex, area of residence, and socioeconomic status (SES).

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was performed in 1948 schoolchildren aged 8.0 to 11.9 years. Body weight, height, triceps skinfold, waist, and upper arm circumferences were measured. Nutritional status and body composition were estimated using the NHANES III reference. SES was surveyed with the Family Affluence Scale. Area of residence was classified as urban or rural based on the criteria of the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses of Argentina. Logistic regression analysis was applied to evaluate nutritional status and body composition according to sex, area of residence, and SES.

RESULTS

The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 12.3% and 18.2%, respectively, as compared with that of underweight (2.3%), stunting (3%), and wasting (2.1%). The prevalence of stunting and wasting was higher in girls, while that of obesity was higher in boys. Low SES schoolchildren registered a higher prevalence of stunting. Analysis of body composition indicated modifications in adipose and muscular tissues, especially in undernourished (underweight, stunting, or wasting) children and children with excess weight (overweight or obesity).

CONCLUSION

The child population from Tucumán is undergoing an accelerated process of nutritional transition, manifested by the double burden of malnutrition. The distribution of stunting, wasting, and obesity, and changes in fat and muscular tissues were not homogeneous, revealing differences according to sex, area of residence, and SES.

Affordances for Motor Skill Development in Home, School, and Sport Environments: A Narrative Review

Through development, a child's varied movement contexts provide different opportunities or affordances for action that are fundamental to promoting motor competence. Although home is the primary environment for infants, as children age, school and sport environments gain importance. Studies focusing on affordances for motor behavior in children have mainly addressed the home microsystem, providing an incomplete picture of affordances across different settings, particularly later in development. Here, we undertook a narrative literature review of various affordances for children's motor development. This review revealed that prior studies of school and sports contexts have not specifically focused on those environmental properties that promote or hinder motor learning opportunities, meaning that future research should assess these relationships through manipulations of environmental features in these different microsystems.