The reallocation of body fat toward the abdomen persists to very old age, while body mass index declines after middle age in Chinese.
OBJECTIVE
Age-specific distributions of several anthropometric measurements were examined to elucidate age-associated changes.


METHODS
Community-based cross-sectional analysis, which was performed on anthropometric data collected from members of 2769 families from November 1991 to September 1993.


METHODS
2776 Chinese men and 3176 non-pregnant Chinese women.


METHODS
Age-specific values of several obesity indices, including a general obesity index (body mass index) and obesity indices at various parts of the body, including waist-to-hip ratio, waist circumference, hip circumference, arm circumference, triceps skinfold thickness and subscapular skinfold thickness.


RESULTS
The age-specific percentile values of weight, body mass index, arm circumference, triceps skinfold thickness, subscapular skinfold thickness and hip circumference showed a gradual increase with age up to middle age, but a decline subsequently. This 'up and then down' phenomenon occurred later in women than in men. On the other hand, age-specific percentile values of waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio showed a steady increase with age from early life.


CONCLUSIONS
These data indicate that, in very old age, a greater amount of fat tends to accumulate in the abdominal region compared to the deposition in the younger age groups. This occurs despite a decrease in body weight and body mass index after middle age.
Teh
B H
BH
Division of Epidemiology and Public Health, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.
Pan
W H
WH
Chen
C J
CJ
D000005:Abdomen; D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D000886:Anthropometry; D001823:Body Composition; D001824:Body Constitution; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012885:Skinfold Thickness; D013624:Taiwan