Seasonal Variations in Growth and Body Composition of 8-11-y-old Danish Children

Overview

Journal Pediatr Res

Specialties Biology
Pediatrics

Date 2015 Oct 22

PMID 26488554

Citations 10

Authors

Stine-Mathilde Dalskov

Christian Ritz

Anni Larnkjaer

Camilla T Damsgaard

Rikke A Petersen

Louise B Sorensen

Mads F Hjorth

Ken K Ong

Arne Astrup

Christian Molgaard

Kim F Michaelsen

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Earlier studies on seasonality in growth reported the largest height gains during spring and largest body weight gains during autumn. We examined seasonality in height, body weight, BMI, fat mass index (FMI), and fat-free mass index (FFMI) among contemporary Danish 8-11-y olds.

Methods: A total of 760 children from the OPUS School Meal Study provided >2,200 measurements on height, body weight, and composition between September and June. Average velocities were calculated using change-score analyses based on 3-mo intervals. As a complementary analysis, point velocities derived from estimated growth curves were fitted using semiparametric regression that included covariate adjustment and allowed flexible modeling of the time trend.

Results: Average velocities showed the following trends: height was higher than the average (6.10 cm/y) in January-April. Body weight was below the average (4.02 kg/y) in August-January and above in January-May; BMI (average: 0.49 kg/ m(2)/y) and FFMI (average: 0.17 kg/m(2)/y) showed similar trends. In contrast, FMI was above the average (0.38 kg/m(2)/y) in November-March. Similar trends were seen for point velocities.

Conclusion: Our findings suggest seasonality in growth and body composition of Danish children. We recovered the well-known height velocity peak during spring time, but unlike earlier studies, we found coincident peaks in body weight, BMI, and FFMI velocities.

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