Objective:
To analyze recent trends in waist circumference(WC) and central obesity rate of Chinses children and adolescence aged 7-18 from 1993 to 2015, and to provid the theoretical basis for further prevention and control of children obesity.
Methods:
The samples were derived from the China Health and Nutrition Survey from 1993 to 2015 (both boys and girls aged 7-18). The criteria of WS/T 586—2017 were adopted as classification standard for central obesity and the coefficient of skewness-median-coefficient of variation method was used to reveal the trends of waist circumference distribution.
Results:
From 1993 to 2015,waist circumference curves flattened and expanded at higher levels in boys and girls. The P50 and P85th percentile WC curves showed an increasing trend with high percentile increasing more obviously. WC increased 3.84 and 1.55 cm for boys and girls. The prevalence rate of central obesity increased in both genders, which increased from 4.08% to 20.64% in boys and from 6.29% to 20.98% in girls. Besides, higher increasing rate was observed among boy, and urban.
Conclusion
A rapid increase in waist circumference was present among Chinese children and adolescence. A gradient of increasing prevalence of central obesity was also observed in boys and girls, as well as in different BMI levels. Appropriate measures should be taken to control the increase in the course of the central obesity epidemic.