title: Higher household income and the availability of electronic devices and transport at home are associated with higher waist circumference in Colombian children: the ACFIES study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The current "epidemic" of childhood obesity is described as being driven by modern lifestyles with associated socioeconomic and environmental changes that modify dietary habits, discourage physical activity and encourage sedentary behaviors.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the association between household income and the availability of electronic devices and transport at home, and the values of waist circumference (WC), as an indicator of abdominal obesity, in children and adolescents from Bucaramanga, Colombia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study of public elementary and high school population, of low-middle socioeconomic status.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 668 schoolchildren were recruited. After adjusting for potential confounders, significant positive associations between waist circumference and higher household income (p = 0.011), and waist circumference and the availability of electronic devices and transport at home (p = 0.026) were found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In low-middle socioeconomic status schoolchildren in a developing country, those from relatively more affluent families had greater waist circumference, an association that is opposite to that observed in developed countries. This finding could be related to higher income family's ability to purchase electronic devices and motorized transport which discourage physical activity and for their children to buy desirable and more costly western fast food.
authors: Dirección de Investigaciones, Fundación Oftalmológica de Santander-FOSCAL, Calle 155 A # 29-13, Torre Milton Salazar, Primer Piso, Floridablanca, Colombia.
authors: Diego
authors: D
authors: Gómez-Arbeláez
authors: Dirección de Investigaciones, Fundación Oftalmológica de Santander-FOSCAL, Calle 155 A # 29-13, Torre Milton Salazar, Primer Piso, Floridablanca, Colombia.
authors: Paul A
authors: PA
authors: Camacho
authors: Dirección de Investigaciones, Fundación Oftalmológica de Santander-FOSCAL, Calle 155 A # 29-13, Torre Milton Salazar, Primer Piso, Floridablanca, Colombia.
authors: Daniel D
authors: DD
authors: Cohen
authors: Dirección de Investigaciones, Fundación Oftalmológica de Santander-FOSCAL, Calle 155 A # 29-13, Torre Milton Salazar, Primer Piso, Floridablanca, Colombia.
authors: Katherine
authors: K
authors: Rincón-Romero
authors: Dirección de Investigaciones, Fundación Oftalmológica de Santander-FOSCAL, Calle 155 A # 29-13, Torre Milton Salazar, Primer Piso, Floridablanca, Colombia.
authors: Laura
authors: L
authors: Alvarado-Jurado
authors: Facultad de Salud, Universidad de Santander-UDES, Bucaramanga, Colombia.
authors: Sandra
authors: S
authors: Pinzón
authors: Escuela de Medicina, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia.
authors: John
authors: J
authors: Duperly
authors: Dirección de Investigaciones, Fundación Oftalmológica de Santander-FOSCAL, Calle 155 A # 29-13, Torre Milton Salazar, Primer Piso, Floridablanca, Colombia. jplopezj@gmail.com.
authors: Patricio
authors: P
authors: López-Jaramillo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003105:Colombia / Q000453:epidemiology; D003201:Computers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008297:Male; D063766:Pediatric Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014186:Transportation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055105:Waist Circumference