Dual burden of body weight among Iranian children and adolescents in 2003 and 2010: the CASPIAN-III study.
BACKGROUND
Our aim was to compare changes of body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) curves of Iranian children by comparing the results of two national surveys of a surveillance program, i.e. CASPIAN-I (2003-2004) and CASPIAN-III (2009-2010). The second objective was to evaluate the prevalence of obesity, overweight and underweight among 10-18-year-old Iranian children and adolescents.


METHODS
This study was performed among students who were selected by multistage random cluster sampling from urban and rural areas of 27 provinces of Iran, as part of a national survey of school student high risk behavior entitled CASPIAN-III, conducted in 2009-2010.


RESULTS
We evaluated 5088 school students (50.2% boys). In rural areas, underweight was more common in boys and overweight and obesity in girls. In urban areas underweight and obesity were more common in boys, whereas overweight was more common in girls. The highest prevalence of underweight (23.5%) was seen in students aged 13 years and the lowest (11.4%) in those aged 18 years. Underweight was significantly more common in rural than in urban areas (22.1% vs. 15.8%, respectively, p < 0.0001) and overweight/obesity was more common in urban than in rural areas. Compared with the findings in 2003-2004, the overall prevalence of elevated body mass index (16.6%) including obesity (9.1%) and overweight (7.5%) as well as underweight (17.5%) increased from 2003 to 2010.


CONCLUSIONS
In recent years, the double burden of nutritional disorders has increased among Iranian children and adolescents, especially in rural areas. This change may be related to epidemiologic transition, notably in terms of nutrition transition and rapid changes in lifestyle habits. This finding is an important issue for policy-makers for interventional preventive programs.
Yazd Diabetes Research Center, Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, Iran.
Masoud
M
Rahmanian
Department of Pediatrics, Child Growth and Development Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
Roya
R
Kelishadi
Department of Public Health, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran ; Department of Epidemiology, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Mostafa
M
Qorbani
Department of Pediatrics, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran ; Bureau of Population, Family and School Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
Mohammad Esmaeil
ME
Motlagh
Chronic Diseases Research Center (CDRC), Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran ; Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Gita
G
Shafiee
Bureau of Population, Family and School Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
Tahereh
T
Aminaee
Bureau of Population, Family and School Health, Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Tehran, Iran.
Gelayol
G
Ardalan
Bureau of Health and Fitness, Ministry of Education and Training, Tehran, Iran.
Mahnaz
M
Taslimi
Department of Pediatrics, Child Growth and Development Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
Parinaz
P
Poursafa
Department of Medical Emergencies, Qom University of Medical Sciences, Qom, Iran.
Hamid
H
Asayesh
Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Bagher
B
Larijani
Chronic Diseases Research Center (CDRC), Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran ; Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Ramin
R
Heshmat
body mass index; obesity; pediatric age; underweight; waist circumference