title: Gender Difference in Body Fat for Healthy Chinese Children and Adolescents.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study aimed to establish gender-related differences and the percentile curves for total body fat mass percentage (Total FM%), trunk/appendicular fat mass ratio (TrAppFMR), and fat mass ratio as % fat trunk/% fat lower limb (TrLLFMR) in Chinese children and adolescents using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA).
  
  
  METHODS
  Children (n = 1541; 764 girls) and adolescents aged 5 to 19 years were recruited from southern China. Total FM% and regional FM were measured by DXA. TrAppFMR values were calculated as trunk FM divided by appendicular FM, and TrLLFMR values were calculated as the ratio between the percentage of trunk FM and the percentage of lower limb FM.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Total FM% peaks for boys were at approximately age 11 years and continued to increase for girls throughout adolescence. Median Total FM% at the age of 19 years was 15.53% and 28.06% for boys and girls, respectively. Median TrAppFMR and TrLLFMR increases were 61% and 81% from 5 to 19 years of age in boys compared with those in girls, 31% and 54%. The curves for median TrAppFMR and TrLLFMR in girls were relatively flat, with TrAppFMR and TrLLFMR remaining near 1.0 after 16 years of age, whereas in boys, median TrAppFMR and TrLLFMR increased with age until approximately 19 years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Gender differences in the patterns of proportion and distribution of body fat were found. We present sex-specific percentile curves for Total FM%-age, TrAppFMR-age, and TrLLFMR-age relationships in this population.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: 2 Department of Nursing, Medical College, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Qiulian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Zeyu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Yongjin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Jingjie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shang
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Nuclear Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Jinan University , Guangzhou, China .
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D050154:Adiposity / Q000502:physiology*; D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D000886:Anthropometry; D044466:Asian People; D001823:Body Composition / Q000502:physiology*; D050218:Body Fat Distribution; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012016:Reference Values; D017678:Sex Distribution