Long-term Tendencies in the Body Mass Index and the Energy Uptake of Jena Schoolchildren

Konrad Zellner, Gottfried Ulbricht, Katrin Kromeyer-Hauschild, Jena und Potsdam-Rehbrücke

The body mass index is often applied to identify the weight status – both in adults and in children. In this paper, the long-term trends in the BMI in schoolchildren from Jena/Germany are analysed over a period of 125 years in relation to energy intake.

Between 1880 and 2005/2006, the average BMI of the 7- to 14-year-old children increased by 1.8 kg/m2 in boys and by 2.1 kg/m2 in girls. Until the middle of the 1880s, there was a strong association between changes in energy intake and changes in the BMI. However, in later years, the BMI has risen much more steeply than the energy intake. This indicates that the recent dramatic increase in the prevalence of overweight and obesity is not only due to increased energy intake, but also to changes in physical activity of children and adolescents.

Keywords: Body mass index, Jena schoolchildren, energy uptake, obesity, energy balance

Sie finden den Artikel in deutscher Sprache in Ernährungs Umschau 12/09 ab Seite 6167.