teens and child obesity

Childhood obesity statistics have horrified the public. Childhood obesity statistics shows obesity epidemic amongst children and teenagers. Children are courted and targeted by many fast food chains, which promote super-size portions and all-you-can-eat offers. Children also send a great deal of time in front of the computer or playing video games, rather than riding bikes, skating or other outdoor activities which were important pastimes for kids of previous generations. Child obesity and diabetes levels are rising dramatically.

BMI calculation for children and teens

For children, BMI is used to screen for overweight, at risk of overweight, or underweight. BMI calculation is the same way for children and adults, but criteria used to interpret the meaning of the BMI number for children and teens are different. For children and teens, BMI age and sex specific percentiles are used for two reasons:

- The amount of body fat changes with age.
- The amount of body fat differs between girls and boys.

Body Mass Index percentile

After BMI is calculated for children and teens, the BMI number is plotted on the BMI charts to obtain a percentile ranking for either girls or boys. The percentile indicates the relative position of the child’s BMI number among children of the same sex and age.

Interpretation of Body Mass Index (BMI) percentile

For adults Body Mass Index (BMI) percentile is interpreted using weight status categories.

Calculating BMI for children of different ages and sexes may yield the same numeric result, but that number will fall at a different percentile for each child.