Food & Nutrition

Arab Journal of Food & Nutrition
23. A Study of Anthropometric Indicators of Overweight and Obesity and
Dietary Habits of a Sample of Schoolchildren Aged 6-12 Years in Jordan (1997)
Mayson Ahmad Darawsheh\ University of Jordan
Supervisor: Dr. Mousa Numan Ahmad
Body weight (W), height (H), circumferences of arm (AC), waist (WC) and hip
(HG), skinfold thickness at biceps, triceps, suprailiac and subscapular, and some of
their indices including W/H, W/H2, W/H3, WC/HC and trunk ratio, as well as body fat
% and total body fat were studied in a random sample of 500 Jordanian
schoolchildren, 236 boys and 264 girls apparently healthy, aged 6-12 years. Dietary
habits and patterns of obese children were also studied in a subsample of 20 obese and
20 lean children of equal number of sexes, aged 10-12 years.
W/H2, triceps and subscapular skinfold thicknesses were found to be the best
indices of obesity. Prevalence of obesity in the subjects was about 17%, 7%, 6% and
8% according to relative body weight (120% desirable body weight), W/H2 triceps
and subscapular skinfold thicknesses respectively. WC/HC was found to be a poor
indicator of body fat distribution in boys and girls. Relative hyperphagia and several
aberrant eating habits were observed in obese boys and girls.
It may be concluded that W/H2 is the most suitable indicator of overweight and
obesity in children aged 6-12 years. Disturbed eating behaviors are main features of
Jordanian obese boys and girls. More studies and national projects are needed to set up
desirable body weight limits and indices, to estimate the prevalence of obesity in the
local population subgroups, and to eliminate the aberrant eating behaviors among
school children in Jordan.
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Volume 11, No. 25, 2011
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