Overweight and associated factors in children from northeastern Brazil.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the prevalence of overweight and its association with socioeconomic, biological, and maternal factors in children under 5 years of age in the semiarid region of the state of Alagoas.


METHODS
This was a cross-sectional study with a representative sample. We evaluated child variables (excess weight, sex, birth weight, prematurity, duration of breastfeeding, and origin) and mother variables (excess weight, central obesity, income, education, and smoking during pregnancy). Excess weight in children was defined based on the weight-for-height ≥ 1 z score; in mothers, overweight and central obesity were identified by mass body index ≥ 30 kg/m2 and waist circumference ≥ 80 cm, respectively. We conducted logistic regression, adopting overweight as an outcome, considering as significant p < 0.05.


RESULTS
The sample comprised 963 children, with a mean age of 27.7 months (SD ±17.3). The prevalence of overweight children was 28.5%, directly associated with central obesity in the mother (odds ratio = 1.46; 95%CI 1.07-1.98) and duration of non-exclusive breastfeeding for a period of less than 6 months (odds ratio = 1.82, 95%CI 1.31-2.51).


CONCLUSIONS
This study showed a high prevalence of overweight children under 5 years of age associated with central obesity in the mother and non-exclusive breastfeeding for a period less than 6 months. These findings suggest that breastfeeding may protect children against overweight and point to the need for primary and secondary prevention of maternal central obesity.
Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, Brazil. cellinhamoreira@gmail.com
Marcella A
MA
Moreira
Poliana C
PC
Cabral
Haroldo S
HS
Ferreira
Pedro I C de
PI
Lira
D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D009752:Nutritional Status; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors