Correlation between high risk obesity groups and low socioeconomic status in school children.
OBJECTIVE
Obesity is a major health problem among children and adolescents which is potentially affected by socioeconomic status (SES). The high risk group (HRG) comprises those youths with a body mass index (BMI) between the 85th and 95th percentile (at risk for overweight) and > or = 95th percentile (overweight). We sought a potential link between the HRG and SES.


METHODS
Public schools in Chesterfield County, Virginia measured BMI among students in kindergarten and third, seventh, and tenth grades. We assessed SES based on eligibility for the National School Lunch Program and the percentage of the school-age population living in poverty based on per capita income from the 2000 Census.


RESULTS
From 28 to 38% of children and adolescents were in the high risk group. Low SES had robust and highly significant correlations with HRG status with r-values ranging from 0.565 to 0.842, P < 0.0001.


CONCLUSIONS
Low SES appears to be an important factor in childhood and adolescent obesity.
Vieweg
Victor R
VR
Departments of Psychiatry, Medical College of Virginia Campus, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA. vvieweg@visi.net
Johnston
Christopher H
CH
Lanier
Jack O
JO
Fernandez
Antony
A
Pandurangi
Anand K
AK
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D050177:Overweight; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012923:Social Class; D014768:Virginia / Q000453:epidemiology