Comparative assessment of the informativity of indication methodsexcess body weight

Abstract

The tendency that has emerged in recent years towards an increase in the number of overweight children, as well as an increase in the incidence of children associated with obesity and overweight, actualizes the timely indication of deviations in the physical development of children in order to prevent health disorders. The article provides a comparative analysis of methods for assessing the physical development of children using somatometric indicators: methods of sigma deviations (deviation from standard arithmetic mean values by the value of sigma deviation), estimates on regression scales that take into account the correlation between body weight and body length and age (deviations from the proper values from M –1 to M + 2σR), body mass index estimates by calculating the Quetelet index, using the SDS-standard deviation score, Z-score (WHO 2007) and bioimpedance analysis. The generalized analysis in the age group 12–17 revealed the highest percentage of overweight children when analyzed using bioimpedansometry (20.9 %) and when assessing BMI according to the WHO method of 21.2 % regardless of gender and significantly lower indicators when assessing with using regression scales and sigma deviations (9.6 % among boys and 18.7 % — among girls when assessed using regression scales and 15.3 %, and 11.2 % — when assessed by the method of sigma deviations). The broad capabilities of bioimpedance analysis of body composition make it possible to diagnose the presence of overweight and obesity at the individual level. Comparable results obtained in bioimpedance analysis and in assessing body mass index using the method (WHO, 2007), allow us to consider this method in population studies of indication of overweight and obesity as a rather informative method.