Waist-based anthropometric measures and central adiposity-related comorbidities in children

Background: Waist-related measures are commonly used to classify central adiposity and related comorbidities. This classification may be essential among children, as it may identify the risk of future non-communicable diseases. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa, among 459 primary school learners aged 9–14 years. Height, weight and waist circumference (WC) were measured using standardised techniques recommended by World Health Organization (WHO). The anthropometric measurements, including body mass index (BMI), WC, waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were computed and evaluated. Results: Most participants were girls (57.70%) with an average age of 11.20 ± 1.60 years. The average weight was 38.81 kg ± 10.49 kg with an average height of 144.16 (standard deviation [s.d.] = 10.37) cm. The sample had a BMI of 18.41 kg/m² (s.d. = 3.19). The results showed, on average, WC of 62.10 cm ± 8.12 cm, WHR of 0.82 ± 0.15 and WHtR of 0.44 ± 0.05. Girls reported significantly higher BMI, WC and WHtR. Based on WHtR, the results showed the acceptable ability to classify children according to abdominal obesity, thus identifying their risk for comorbidities. Conclusion: Overall body fat indicated by BMI and central obesity shown by waist-related anthropometric measures can play a significant role in classifying children in terms of their risk of comorbidities. Contribution: To prevent the risks of metabolic diseases in childhood, it is necessary to detect abdominal obesity early using WC-based anthropometric measurements, especially WHtR, to identify those at risk.