Comparison of the anthropometric assessment of adolescents of privilegedand unprivileged social and economic levels

摘要

This article compares the anthropometric profile of 132 female adolescents, 11 to 18 years old, of different social and economic levels. 58 are students of Fernando Rodrigues of Silveira Aplicacao School of the State University of Rio de Janeiro (CAP/UERJ) and 74 are students of two unprivileged Schools. In order to classify the social and economic level, the job and the level of education of both parents have been used as criteria, as well as the number of family members who live in the same home. The social and economic evaluation showed that 75% of the CAP/UERJ students' parents have a university level education and they have a job which corresponds to it; while among the parents of those adolescents of the other schools, 49% have an elementary school level education. The anthropometric evaluation consisted of measuring the weight, stature, mid - arm circumference and seven skinfolds. The anthropometric study showed that the privileged social and economic level adolescents presented a larger percentile of body fat and they were significantly taller than the socially and economically unprivileged level adolescents.