Abstract
Re-evaluation of adult obesity thresholds in some ethnic groups has led to the questioning of childhood obesity thresholds. An expert group was convened to examine the representativeness of childhood obesity definitions, evidence for ethnic differences in body composition in UK children and the extent of misclassification of adiposity by current body mass index (BMI) thresholds in south Asian and black groups. The group concluded that the current International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) definitions remained the most appropriate for use in the United Kingdom, but further research was needed on the relationship of body shape, fat mass, metabolic markers and ethnicity in children and adolescents.
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Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to the Child Growth Foundation, UK, for supporting the meeting. The above data are being prepared for separate publications by the authors concerned. Travel and arrangements for the meeting were funded by the UK Child Growth Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation (http://www.childgrowthfoundation.org/). Participants were not personally remunerated.
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Viner, R., Fry, T., Gupta, S. et al. Insufficient evidence to support separate BMI definitions for obesity in children and adolescents from south Asian ethnic groups in the UK. Int J Obes 34, 656–658 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2009.237
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2009.237
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