Prevalence of overweight and obesity among primary school students in Bandar Abbas, Iran

Introduction: Childhood overweight and obesity is linked to obesity in adulthood and regarding the negative effects of obesity on physical and mental health, weight management in childhood is of a special importance. This study aims at analyzing the prevalence of overweight and obesity, based on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) new child growth standards, among primary school students in the Bandar Abbas, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 1500 (7-12 year old children) studying in primary schools of Bandar Abbas city. For collecting nutritional information of children and their families a questionnaire was used and their height, weight and waist circumference were measured by the educated trainers and finally children’s BMI was assessed. Results: Out of a total of 1052 subjects, whose information were complete, 624 students (59.3%) were boys and 427 students (40.6%) were girls; 14.37% were malnourished (below 5 percentile), 58.24% were normal (between 5 and 85 percentiles) and 8.64% were overweight (between 85 and 95 percentiles) and 18.75% were obese (over 95 percentile). Conclusion: Today children’s overweight and obesity have been doubled in contrast to a decade ago in Bandar Abbas city. However, implementation of more education programs regarding safe nutrition in children is recommended.