title: Agreement between measured and self-reported height, weight and BMI in predominantly European middle-aged New Zealanders: findings from a nationwide 1989 survey.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the agreement between self-reported and measured height, weight and BMI in 40-50 year old New Zealand men and women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Self-reported and measured height, weight and derived BMI were examined using data from 345 40-50 year old participants in the 1989/1990 Life In New Zealand Survey. Factors associated with biased reporting were assessed using regression models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Height was overestimated by men (1.08 cm, 95%CI 0.58, 1.59 p<0.001) and women (0.61 cm, 95%CI 0.35, 0.87, p<0.001), contributing to a small but statistically significant underestimation of BMI (men 0.31 kg/m2, 95%CI 0.14, 0.48, p<0.001; women 0.26 kg/m2 95%CI 0.11, 0.41, p<0.001). Weight was not statistically significantly misestimated by either sex. Bias in self-reported BMI did not differ by age, sex, ethnicity, SES or measured BMI category (all p-values <0.231). Agreement between BMI categories based on self-reported and measured data was very good (kappa: men 0.80, women 0.93).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Self-reported height and weight from New Zealand 40-50 year olds in 1989 produced BMI estimates valid for use in epidemiological studies, especially when used as a continuous variable. Our analyses need to be replicated using data from a current and representative New Zealand sample.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Nutrition, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sharples
authors.forename: Peter W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Crutchley
authors.forename: José A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.forename: Andrew R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Gray
authors.forename: Caroline C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Horwath
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001827:Body Height; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009520:New Zealand / Q000453:epidemiology; D009765:Obesity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012649:Self Concept; D012650:Self Disclosure; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult