The risk analysis of arm fat area in Turkish children and adolescents

摘要

Aim: The study examined the risk factors associated with arm fat area (AFA) in Turkish children and adolescents. Methods and samples: This study was conducted with 5358 (2621 boys, 2737 girls) children and adolescents aged 6-17 years. Height, weight, waist circumference, mid-upper arm circumference and triceps skinfold thickness were measured. Body mass index, fat percentage, waist-to-height ratio, and AFA were calculated. A questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic data. For age- and gender-specific AFA, three groups were created by percentiles (underweight <5th, healthy weight ≥5-84.99th, overweight ≥85th percentiles). Multinomial logistic regression analyses were performed to determine the risk factors. Results: For the entire group, underweight and overweight prevalences were 4.7% and 14.9%, respectively. The body-size variables increased across age in Turkish boys and girls. The most significant risk factors for AFA were shown to be appetite, sleep duration, household income, and elevator use. Conclusion: AFA can be a significant index, in combination with other well-known anthropometric indices, in determining nutritional status.