Prevalence and correlates of obesity in preschool children

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Obesity, a common nutritional disorder in childhood, is a complex problem that is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence of obesity in preschool children, and to examine the relationships between obesity and gender, race, socioeconomic status, and health problems. Data were collected from 309 charts of children enrolled in a Head Start program. Ninety-nine (32%) of the children were obese. Obese children had significantly higher blood pressure readings than those who were not obese. This study represents a beginning effort to learn more about the prevalence of, and factors associated with, obesity in preschoolers.

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      The pattern of findings in the present study suggests a beneficial effect of Head Start on children's weight status, but the effect was modified by both the child's sociodemographic characteristics and weight status at enrollment. The children in the present study began their Head Start experience with a distribution of BMIs significantly above the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reference means for children of the same age and gender, consistent with the prior reports of Head Start enrollees having a higher prevalence of obesity than same-aged children in the general US population.9–12 The central finding of the present study was that over the course of enrollment, there was a significant shift in the BMI distribution of the sample toward the population reference mean, such that at the conclusion of 2 years of Head Start exposure, this sample of low-income children had a distribution of BMIs no different from national norms defining healthy BMIs for children in this age range.

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      Given that obesity in early childhood tracks into later childhood7 and adulthood,8 the preschool years present as a critical time for attempting to thoughtfully shape children's eating behaviors and food preferences. Children attending Head Start, the United States' federally funded preschool program for low-income children, are significantly more likely to be overweight (body mass index [BMI] greater than or equal to the 95th percentile for age and gender) than the general population of preschool-aged children, with prevalence reports ranging from 15% to 32%.9-12 Despite the magnitude of the overweight epidemic, few studies have directly addressed implementation of obesity prevention programs in the Head Start setting.13,14

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