Social differences in smoking and snuff use among Norwegian adolescents: A population based survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>A change in pattern of tobacco use has been observed in the last decade in Norway. Snuff use and occasional smoking have to some degree replaced daily smoking among adolescents and young adults. Daily smoking is known to be negatively associated with social background factors, but little is known about these associations for other types of tobacco use. Our aim was to study different types of tobacco use among adolescents according to gender, educational ambitions, family background factors, and urbanization.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cross-sectional, school-based study with 15 931 participants and response-rate 87%, conducted among 15 and 16 year olds during 2000–2004.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>More girls (33.8%) than boys (26.4%) were daily or occasional smokers, while more boys (21.4%) than girls (3.5%) were daily or occasional snuff users. Daily smoking was more common among adolescents planning vocational education, with single parents or poor family economy. Occasional smoking and snuff use (daily or occasionally) showed a similar, but less pronounced pattern regarding education and single parent families. Adolescents with parents from foreign countries were less likely to use tobacco. One exception was boys with parents from Muslim majority countries who had an increased risk of daily smoking. A typical combination user of both tobacco types was a Norwegian boy with divorced parents and ambitions to complete vocational studies or only one year of upper secondary school.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Tobacco use in adolescents is mainly associated with low educational ambitions and less affluent self-reported family economy. Adolescents with divorced parents use more tobacco than those living with both parents. Public health initiatives to avoid or reduce tobacco use should mainly target adolescents in vocational studies and those leaving school early.</p

Regression models for linking patterns of growth to a later outcome:Infant growth and childhood overweight

Abstract Background Regression models are widely used to link serial measures of anthropometric size or changes in size to a later outcome. Different parameterisations of these models enable one to target different questions about the effect of growth, however, their interpretation can be challenging. Our objective was to formulate and classify several sets of parameterisations by their underlying growth pattern contrast, and to discuss their utility using an expository example. Methods We describe and classify five sets of model parameterisations in accordance with their underlying growth pattern contrast (conditional growth; being bigger v being smaller; becoming bigger and staying bigger; growing faster v being bigger; becoming and staying bigger versus being bigger). The contrasts are estimated by including different sets of repeated measures of size and changes in size in a regression model. We illustrate these models in the setting of linking infant growth (measured on 6 occasions: birth, 6 weeks, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months) in weight-for-height-for-age z-scores to later childhood overweight at 8y using complete cases from the Norwegian Childhood Growth study (n = 900). Results In our expository example, conditional growth during all periods, becoming bigger in any interval and staying bigger through infancy, and being bigger from birth were all associated with higher odds of later overweight. The highest odds of later overweight occurred for individuals who experienced high conditional growth or became bigger in the 3 to 6 month period and stayed bigger, and those who were bigger from birth to 24 months. Comparisons between periods and between growth patterns require large sample sizes and need to consider how to scale associations to make comparisons fair; with respect to the latter, we show one approach. Conclusion Studies interested in detrimental growth patterns may gain extra insight from reporting several sets of growth pattern contrasts, and hence an approach that incorporates several sets of model parameterisations. Co-efficients from these models require careful interpretation, taking account of the other variables that are conditioned on

WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative: body mass index and level of overweight among 6-9-year-old children from school year 2007/2008 to school year 2009/2010.

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe has established the Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) to monitor changes in overweight in primary-school children. The aims of this paper are to present the anthropometric results of COSI Round 2 (2009/2010) and to explore changes in body mass index (BMI) and overweight among children within and across nine countries from school years 2007/2008 to 2009/2010. METHODS: Using cross-sectional nationally representative samples of 6-9-year-olds, BMI, anthropometric Z-scores and overweight prevalence were derived from measured weight and height. Significant changes between rounds were assessed using variance and t-tests analyses. RESULTS: At Round 2, the prevalence of overweight (including obesity; WHO definitions) ranged from 18% to 57% among boys and from 18% to 50% among girls; 6 - 31% of boys and 5 - 21% of girls were obese. Southern European countries had the highest overweight prevalence. Between rounds, the absolute change in mean BMI (range: from -0.4 to +0.3) and BMI-for-age Z-scores (range: from -0.21 to +0.14) varied statistically significantly across countries. The highest significant decrease in BMI-for-age Z-scores was found in countries with higher absolute BMI values and the highest significant increase in countries with lower BMI values. The highest significant decrease in overweight prevalence was observed in Italy, Portugal and Slovenia and the highest significant increase in Latvia and Norway. CONCLUSIONS: Changes in BMI and prevalence of overweight over a two-year period varied significantly among European countries. It may be that countries with higher prevalence of overweight in COSI Round 1 have implemented interventions to try to remedy this situation

WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative: Impact of Type of Clothing Worn during Anthropometric Measurements and Timing of the Survey on Weight and Body Mass Index Outcome Measures in 6–9-Year-Old Children

Background. The World Health Organization European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) conducted examinations in 6–9-year-old children from 16 countries in the first two rounds of data collection. Allowing participating countries to adhere to their local legal requirements or adapt to other circumstances required developing a flexible protocol for anthropometric procedures. Objectives. (1) Review intercountry variation in types of clothing worn by children during weight and height measurements, clothes weight adjustments applied, timing of the survey, and duration of data collection; (2) assess the impact of the observed variation in these practices on the children’s weight or body mass index (BMI) outcome measures. Results. The relative difference between countries’ unadjusted and clothes-adjusted prevalence estimates for overweight was 0.3–11.5%; this figure was 1.4–33.3% for BMI-for-age Z-score values. Monthly fluctuations in mean BMI-for-age Z-score values did not show a systematic seasonal effect. The majority of the monthly BMI-for-age Z-score values did not differ statistically within a country; only 1–3 monthly values were statistically different within some countries. Conclusions. The findings of the present study suggest that the built-in flexibility in the COSI protocol concerning the data collection practices addressed in the paper can be kept and thus do not necessitate a revision of the COSI protocol.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Barns vekst i Norge 2008-2010-2012. Høyde, vekt og livvidde blant 3. klassinger

Bakgrunn: Barns vekst i Norge, også kalt Barnevekststudien, ble etablert på Folkehelseinstituttet i 2008 som en nasjonal overvåkningsstudie. Hensikten var å dokumentere status og fange opp endringer i forekomst av overvekt og fedme blant barn i Norge. Undersøkelsen er gjennomført høsten 2008, 2010 og 2012 i samarbeid med skolehelsetjenesten på de utvalgte skolene og Helsedirektoratet. Barnevekststudien er en del av overvåkningsprogrammet WHO European Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI), hvilket gjør det mulig å sammenligne resultater mellom flere land i Europa. Undersøkelsen vil bli gjennomført igjen i nye tredjeklasser på de samme skolene høsten 2015. Materiale og metode: I Barnevekststudien deltok et nasjonalt utvalg av tredjeklassinger (gjennomsnittsalder 8.3 år) fra hovedsakelig de samme 127 skolene ved hver målerunde, fordelt på 10 fylker og fire helseregioner. Om lag 90 prosent av elevene deltok hver gang, gjennomsnittlig 3400 elever ved hver av de tre målerundene, totalt 10 221 elever. Helsesøstrene ble opplært i standardiserte målemetoder for høyde, vekt og livvidde i henhold til Barnevekststudiens metodebok. Fra de 3400 tredjeklassingene som deltok i undersøkelsen i 2010 ble det også samlet inn tidligere høyde og vekt rutinemessig målt på helsestasjonen av hvert barn. Hovedfunn: • Det var ingen økning i overvekt og fedme eller bukfedme blant norske tredjeklassinger fra 2008 til 2012; det betyr at forekomsten ser ut til å ha stabilisert seg i denne perioden. • Gjennomsnittlig hadde 16 % av tredjeklassingene overvekt (inkludert fedme), det vil si hver sjette elev var overvektig eller hadde fedme i perioden 2008 - 2012. • I samme periode hadde i gjennomsnitt 8 % av elevene bukfedme. • Jentene hadde en signifikant høyere forekomst av overvekt (inkludert fedme) enn guttene; henholdsvis 17,9 prosent og 14,5 prosent. Med hensyn til bukfedme var det små kjønnsforskjeller. • Det var signifikante forskjeller i overvekt (inkludert fedme) mellom helseregionene; andelen i Helseregion Sør-Øst var signifikant lavere enn i de andre regionene, mens den var signifikant høyere i Helseregion Nord. Øvrige resultater fra Barnevekststudien: • I retrospektive analyser av høyde og vekt fra fødselen så vi at elevene som var overvektige eller hadde fedme i tredjeklasse, hadde en signifikant raskere vekst allerede første leveår sammenliknet med de tredjeklassingene som ikke var overvektige eller hadde fedme ved 8 års alder. • Forekomsten av overvekt (inkludert fedme) var 1,5 – 2 ganger høyere blant tredjeklassinger fra små kommuner sammenliknet med elever i store kommuner. Forskjellene i forekomst av bukfedme mellom små og store kommuner var enda større enn for overvekt (inkludert fedme). • Forekomsten av overvekt (inkludert fedme) var 30% høyere og bukfedme var 80 % høyere blant barn av lavt utdannede mødre sammenlignet med barn av høyt utdannede mødre. • Det var 50 prosent større andel barn med overvekt (inkludert fedme) og nesten dobbelt så stor andel barn med bukfedme blant tredjeklassinger som har skilte foreldre sammenlignet med de som har gifte foreldre. • I gjennomsnitt gikk eller syklet 55 % av elevene til skolen og hver tredje elev ble kjørt i privatbil, uansett skolestørrelse. Utfordringer fremover? Hovedfunnene fra Barnevekststudien tyder på at forekomsten av overvekt og fedme i gjennomsnitt har stabilisert seg blant barn. Utfordringen er derimot at det er en betydelig andel barn med overvekt (inkludert fedme) og bukfedme i undergrupper knyttet til familiens sosioøkonomiske status, foreldrenes sivilstand og om de bor i små eller store kommuner (by/land). Det er en fare for at utviklingen av overvekt (inkludert fedme) og bukfedme i deler av barnebefolkningen vil kunne bidra til å opprettholde og øke sosiale helseforskjeller fremover. I et folkehelseperspektiv må allmenne helsefremmende tiltak i barnehage, skole og nærmiljø rettes mot å forebygge overvekt blant barn med mål å utjevne sosiale helseforskjeller fra tidlig barndom. Videre møter helsestasjons- og skolehelsetjenesten alle småbarnsfamiliene regelmessig og følger hvert enkelt barn med vitale helsemål fra fødselen til barna er 20 år. Denne tjenesten har unike muligheter til tidlig å fange opp barn og familier som er i risiko for å utvikle overvekt og andre helseprobleme. Helsestasjons- og skolehelsetjenesten må gis kompetanse og handlingsrom til å ivareta sine forebyggende oppgaver blant barn og unge i kommunene

Important periods of weight development in childhood: a population-based longitudinal study

Background: Identifying important ages for the development of overweight is essential for optimizing preventive efforts. The purpose of the study was to explore early growth characteristics in children who become overweight or obese at the age of 8 years to identify important ages for the onset of overweight and obesity. Methods: Data from the Norwegian Child Growth Study in 2010 (N = 3172) were linked with repeated measurements from health records beginning at birth. Weight and height were used to derive the body mass index (BMI) in kg/m2. The BMI standard deviation score (SDS) for each participant was estimated at specific target ages, using a piecewise linear mixed effect model. Results: At 8 years of age, 20.4% of the children were overweight or obese. Already at birth, overweight children had a significantly higher mean BMI SDS than normal weight 8-year-olds (p < .001) and this difference increased in consecutive age groups in infancy and childhood. A relatively large increase in BMI during the first 9 months was identified as important for being overweight at 8 years. BMI SDS at birth was associated with overweight at 8 years of age (OR, 1.8; 1.6–2.0), and with obesity (OR, 1.8; 1.4–2.3). The Odds Ratios for the BMI SDS and change in BMI SDS further increased up to 1 year of age became very high from 2 years of age onwards. Conclusions: A high birth weight and an increasing BMI SDS during the first 9 months and high BMI from 2 years of age proved important landmarks for the onset of being overweight at 8 years of age. The risks of being overweight at 8 years appear to start very early. Interventions to prevent children becoming overweight should not only start at a very early age but also include the prenatal stage

Regression models for linking patterns of growth to a later outcome: infant growth and childhood overweight

Background: Regression models are widely used to link serial measures of anthropometric size or changes in size to a later outcome. Different parameterisations of these models enable one to target different questions about the effect of growth, however, their interpretation can be challenging. Our objective was to formulate and classify several sets of parameterisations by their underlying growth pattern contrast, and to discuss their utility using an expository example. Methods: We describe and classify five sets of model parameterisations in accordance with their underlying growth pattern contrast (conditional growth; being bigger v being smaller; becoming bigger and staying bigger; growing faster v being bigger; becoming and staying bigger versus being bigger). The contrasts are estimated by including different sets of repeated measures of size and changes in size in a regression model. We illustrate these models in the setting of linking infant growth (measured on 6 occasions: birth, 6 weeks, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months) in weight-for-height-for-age z-scores to later childhood overweight at 8y using complete cases from the Norwegian Childhood Growth study (n = 900). Results: In our expository example, conditional growth during all periods, becoming bigger in any interval and staying bigger through infancy, and being bigger from birth were all associated with higher odds of later overweight. The highest odds of later overweight occurred for individuals who experienced high conditional growth or became bigger in the 3 to 6 month period and stayed bigger, and those who were bigger from birth to 24 months. Comparisons between periods and between growth patterns require large sample sizes and need to consider how to scale associations to make comparisons fair; with respect to the latter, we show one approach. Conclusion: Studies interested in detrimental growth patterns may gain extra insight from reporting several sets of growth pattern contrasts, and hence an approach that incorporates several sets of model parameterisations. Co-efficients from these models require careful interpretation, taking account of the other variables that are conditioned on