• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.39 no.5
• /
• pp.371-378
• /
• 2006

Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of childhood obesity, the association between the undesirable lifestyles and socioeconomic factors, the association between childhood obesity and various risk factors, including socioeconomic factors, and the agreement between the body mass index (BMI) classification and the body fat percentage. Methods: The study subjects were all the 5th grade students from all the elementary schools in Gunpo City, Kyunggi Province, South Korea (4043 children at 22 schools). The subjects were measured for their height, weight and percent body fat etc. and they were also surveyed by questionnaire from March 18th to April 25th, 2005. To determine whether the children were within normal limits or not, standardized BMIs for each age group were used. The data was analyzed by logistic regression analysis using SAS 9.0 version. Results: The prevalence of childhood obesity prevalence was 25.1 %. Boys had a higher prevalence of obesity (27.5%) than did the girls (22.5%). Children had tendencies of having undesirable lifestyles and getting obese if they had a lower socioeconomic status. The risk factors for childhood obesity were low paternal education (OR: 1.17, 95% CI : 0.97-1.42) and non-parental caregivers (OR: 1.34, 95% CI : 0.98-1.82). Other risk factors for childhood obesity were a high birth-weight, longer TV/computer-using time, a lower fruit-eating frequency, short sleeping hours and parental obesity. The agreement rate between the BMI classification and the body fat percentage was 93.1 %. Conclusions: This study showed the children had a higher prevalence of obesity: further, not only individual lifestyles, but also socioeconomic factors could influence childhood obesity. Childhood obesity was especially more problematic for children with a low socioeconomic status.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.186-199
• /
• 2012

The present study was conducted to investigate dietary habits and biochemical indices according to the obesity index of elementary school students visiting a hospital for diagnosis. The subjects of this study were 150 elementary school students and their mothers. The overweight rates of child subjects were 37.5% for males and 40.9% for females, whereas the rates of underweight children were 35.0% for males and 14.5% for females. Children's obesity index significantly decreased with an increase in the average monthly income of children's families. Children's obesity index, mothers' weights, BMI, and percent ideal body weight were all positively correlated. Blood biochemical values in children (hemoglobin, hematocrit, albumin, globulin, glucose, total cholesterol, and triglyceride levels) and their obesity index also showed positive correlation. For the underweight group, the frequency of iron-deficiency anemia was significantly high, whereas for the overweight group, the frequency of dyslipidemia was high. There was a significant increase in children's obesity index and a decrease in frequency of regular exercise with time spent on the TV/computer. The normal weight group recorded the highest total scores for mothers' nutritional knowledge, whereas the overweight group recorded the lowest total scores. Therefore, to maintain healthy weight in children, nutritional education programs for mothers and children should be developed.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.238-247
• /
• 2017

Objectives: This study was conducted to investigate providers' perspectives on current challenges in implementing a program for prevention and management of childhood obesity and adoption of mobile phone as a potential solution of leveraging multimodal delivery and support in a school setting. Methods: The qualitative data were collected through face-to-face in-depth interviews with 23 elementary-school teachers, 6 pediatricians, and 6 dieticians from community health centers and analyzed using a qualitative research methodology. Results: Current challenges and potential solutions of obesity-prevention and -management program for obesity program for elementary school children were deduced as two themes each. Lack of tailored intervention due to limited recipient motivation, lack of individualized behavioral intervention, and different environmental conditions can be solvable by mobile technology-based personalized intervention which brings about interactive recipient participation, customized behavioral intervention, and ubiquitous accessibility. Lack of sustainable management due to stigmatization, limited interactions between program providers and inconsistent administrative support can be handled by multimodal support based on school setting using mobile platform providing education of health promoting behaviors toward larger scale and interactive networking between program participants, and minimizing administrative burden. Conclusions: Adoption of mobile-based health management program may overcome current limitations of child obesity program such as lack of tailored intervention and sustainable management via personalized intervention and multimodal supports although some concerns such as increased screen time need to be carefully considered in a further study.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.207-215
• /
• 2013

The objective of this study was to investigate the associations between the prevalence of overweight and obesity and the degree of adherence to the Korean Dietary Action Guides for Children (KDAGC). In a cross-sectional study based on a child care center-based survey in Seoul, Korea, we collected parental-reported questionnaires (n = 2,038) on children's weight and height, frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption, and the quality of dietary and activity behaviors based on the 2009 KDAGC Adherence Index (KDAGCAI) which was developed as a composite measure of adherence to the KDAGC. Overweight and obesity were determined according to age- and sex-specific BMI percentile from the 2007 Korean national growth chart. Associations were assessed with generalized linear models and polytomous logistic regression models. Approximately 17.6% of Korean preschool children were classified as overweight or obese. Obese preschoolers had lower adherence to the KDAGCAI compared to those with lean/normal weight. Preschoolers with a high quality of dietary and activity behaviors had a 51% decreased odds ratio (OR) of being obese (highest vs. lowest tertile of KDAGCAI-score, 95% CI 0.31, 0.78; P = 0.001); the associations were more pronounced among those who were older (P = 0.048) and lived in lower income households (P = 0.014). A greater frequency of vegetable consumption, but not fruit, was associated with a borderline significant reduction in the prevalence of obesity. Our findings support the association between obesity prevention and high compliance with the Korean national dietary and activity guideline among preschool children.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
• /
• v.34 no.2
• /
• pp.198-212
• /
• 2001

This study was designed to compare the prevalence rate of obesity, food attitude, food frequency and food habits between children in Kangnung and Seoul areas. 1,005 children aged 9-12 were included in this study. They were composed of 343 children living in Kangnung from one elementary school, and 662 children in Seoul from two elementary schools. The body weight, height, waist and hip circumferences of children were measured and food frequency scores of Korean and Western foods were examined by questionnaire. And questionnaires about food attitude, food habits and life style were administered to the mother of each child. There was no significant difference in body weight and obesity index among three groups(one school of Kangnung area and two schools of Seoul area). The male children\`s prevalence rates of obesity in Kangnung and two schools(A, B) of Seoul were 10.3%, 10.3% and 7.3%, respectively. Female children\`s prevalence rate were 5.4%, 4.7%, and 6.3%, respectively. Children in Seoul turned out to more frequently eat such Korean foods like pulkogi, kalbi and fried rice and such western foods like butter, margarine, hamburger, pizza, and fried chicken. Children in Seoul had more tendency to eat regularly and spent less time in sleeping and watching TV and more time in exercise than the respondents in Kangnung. The obesity index of parents had a significantly positive correlation with that of children. These results suggest that children in Seoul have tendency to eat high-energy food frequently and to have more energy expenditure than children in Kangnung. In conclusion, further studies on the evaluation of energy intake and energy expenditure of obese and normal children different in area should be conducted. (Korean J Nutrition 34(1) : 198∼212, 2001)

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
• /
• v.11 no.1
• /
• pp.99-110
• /
• 1998

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of obese school children's life style habits in order to help school nurse in controlling and preventing the obesity by health education The survey group is extracted from the students of two elementary schools located in Seongnam city Out of 280 children randomly sampled, 102 children were evaluated to be obese and 178 ones to be normal by the standard of the 1985 Korea Pediatric Association Height and Weight Standard Chart The obese children group was compared with the normal one. For this purpose, the surveyors designed a self questionnaire to obtain the description of general background, exercise including play behavior, eating behavior, and family environment of the sampled children. The results are as follows The number of the obese children who took extracurricular physical exercises was significantly (p<0.05) more than that of the normal ones The significantly (p<0.05) more obese children went without a meal to control their weight than the normal ones. In relation to the degree of obesity, the children with the high degree of obesity watched the television significantly (p<0.05) longer than the ones with the mild and the moderate degree of obesity In gender relations, the obese girls participate in outdoorplays and physical exercises significantly (p<0.05) longer and more regularly than the normal ones, while no significant difference was found between the male groups The obese boys had significantly (p<0.05) their mothers occupying in a vocation. Combining television watching habit and mother's vocation of the obese boy, the obesity is resulted from complicated situation It can not be due to the simple absence of the mother, but rather due to the absence of a person responsible for controlling snacking and television watching time of the child Looking at the results, it is necessary for both school and home to actively involve in guiding children and providing an environment to modify life style habits and prevent childhood obesity.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
• /
• v.62 no.6
• /
• pp.206-212
• /
• 2019

Purpose: The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of childhood obesity and overweight in Iranian children under 5 years of age using a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods: We searched MEDLINE (PubMed), Web of Science, Google Scholar, Scopus, CINHAL, and the Iranian databases, including Scientific Information Database (www.sid.ir), Iranian Research Institute for Information Science and Technology (Irandoc.ac.ir), Iranmedex (www.iranmedex.com), and Magiran (www.magiran.com), for all articles published between January 1989 and August 2017. Sources of heterogeneity were determined using subgroup analysis and meta-regression. Results: Six articles were ultimately included in the meta-analysis to estimate the pooled prevalence, based on which the prevalence of obesity and overweight were estimated to be 8% (95% confidence interval [CI], 6%-10%) and 9% (95% CI, 7%-11%), respectively. The results of the subgroup analysis showed that the prevalence of obesity in boys and girls was 9% (95% CI, 6%-13%) and 7% (95% CI, 4-10%), respectively, and the prevalence of overweight in boys and girls was 10% (95% CI, 5%-15%) and 9% (95% CI, 5%-13%), respectively. Conclusion: Despite high heterogeneity among the results of the articles included in the meta-analysis, the prevalence of obesity and overweight is higher in Iranian children under 5 years of age. Therefore, parents and the health system must pay more attention to the lifestyle, nutritional habits, and physical activity of these children.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
• /
• v.62 no.8
• /
• pp.317-323
• /
• 2019

Purpose: Investigating the prevalence of hyperuricemia and its association with metabolic syndrome (MetS) and cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRFs) in Korean children and adolescents. Methods: This cross-sectional survey used data from the 7th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016-2017); 1,256 males and females aged 10-18 years were included. Hyperuricemia was defined as serum uric acid levels were >6.6 mg/dL at 10-11 years of age (both sexes), >7.7 mg/dL for males at 12-18 years of age and >5.7 mg/dL for females at 12-18 years of age. MetS was defined by the International Diabetes Federation criteria. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze hyperuricemia-associated risk factors. Results: The prevalence of hyperuricemia was 9.4% (male, 8.4%; female, 10.5%) (P<0.281). After adjusting for sociodemographic factors and health behaviors in multivariate analysis (model 1), the odds ratio (OR) for hyperuricemia of MetS was 3.05 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.17-7.92; P=0.022). After adjusting for the same variables in model 1 plus obesity and all MetS components (model 2), only abdominal obesity was significant, and the OR for hyperuricemia was 3.38 (95% CI, 1.72-6.63; P<0.001) After adjusting for the same variables in model 1 plus body mass index (BMI) z scores and all MetS components except abdominal obesity (model 3), only BMI z scores was significant, and the OR for hyperuricemia was 1.59 (95% CI, 1.34-1.89; P<0.001). Conclusion: MetS, abdominal obesity, and BMI z scores were CMRFs significantly associated with hyperuricemia in Korean children and adolescents. Therefore, attention should be paid to hyperuricemia in patients with obesity or MetS.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.529-537
• /
• 2008

In this study, the relationships among obesity, food behavior, and personality traits were studied in male and female elementary school children. The obesity rates were calculated via the measured heights and weights of the subjects. Food behavior was surveyed via a questionnaire. Personality traits were evaluated using an authorized personality test. The obesity rates in the child subjects in this study were 34.1%in the male children, and 28.7% in the female children, and the rates of underweight were 18.2% in the males and 28.7% in the females. The percentage of obese children was slightly higher in the male population than in the female population. With regard to food behavior, the females evidenced significantly higher points than the males, particularly on the items designated 'slow eating' and 'stop eating upon satiety'. Among the personality traits assessed herein, which included emotional stability, general activity, sociability, masculinity, responsibility, reflectiveness, and superiority, the females evidenced significantly higher sociability scores than the males. The personality traits did not appear to be significantly associated with the obesity rate. However, the obese children scored lowest on all personality traits among the three groups. In terms of the relationship between food behavior and personality traits, children with high stability, sociability, responsibility, and superiority also had significantly higher food behavior scores. These results imply that the maintenance of good food behavior may enhance stability, sociability, responsibility, and superiority in children.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.115-120
• /
• 2015

Purpose: Cholecystectomy is rarely performed in the child and adolescent. However, it is associated with several conditions. This study was conducted to describe the characteristics of pediatric patient who underwent cholecystectomy unrelated to hematologic disorders, and then to suggest its clinical significance in management by comparing a simple and complicated gallbladder disease. Methods: We reviewed cases of cholecystectomy in pediatric patients (under 18 years old) at a single institution between January 2003 and October 2014. There were 143 cases during the study period and 24 were selected as the subject group. Results: There were 7 male (29.2%) and 17 female (70.8%) patients. The mean age was 13.1 years old, and 66.6% of patients were older than 12 years. Mean body weight was 52.7 kg, and body mass index was $21.7kg/m^2$, with 41.7% of patients being overweight or obese. We could identify a female predominance and high proportion of overweight or obesity in a complicated disease. There were also significantly increased levels of aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and bilirubin in this group. Most patients (87.5%) underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Conclusion: Cholecystectomy for diseases unrelated to hematologic disorders is rarely performed in the child and adolescent. In general, female patients who are overweight or obese, and those older than 12 years old, require laparoscopic cholecystectomy owing to multiple gallstones. This condition has a tendency to show a complicated gallbladder disease and significantly increased levels of AST, ALT, ALP, and bilirubin.