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Correlation of ecuadorian children's body mass index with several of their anthropometric measures

Abstract:

Introduction: Childhood obesity has emerged as a public health issue with substantial implications for short-and long-term well-being. Objective: The objective of the study was to identify whether Body Mass Index is related to several anthropometric measures (arm, waist and calf circumference) in a population of indigenous children from the Sierra region of Ecuador. Methods: The study was observational, prospective, cross-sectional, and analytical, corresponding to the relational level. The group of participants in this study consisted of a total of 416 children, whose ages ranged from 5 to 12 years. It was hypothesised that there is a correlation between BMI and arm, waist and calf circumferences in the population of indigenous children in the Sierra region of Ecuador. Pearson's correlation coefficient was applied using SPSS software. Results: A positive and statistically significant correlation was observed between BMI and brachial circumference (r = 0.687, p < 0.001), waist circumference (r = 0.663, p < 0.001) and calf circumference (r = 0.439, p < 0.001). Conclusions: It was concluded that as BMI increases, arm, waist and calf circumferences tend to increase as well, which indicated a positive correlation between BMI and these body measurements in indigenous children from the Sierra region, thus fulfilling the researchers' hypothesis.