Background: Studies addressing the influence of early sexual maturation on the excess of body weight and height\nof children and adolescents are scarce. The aim of the study was to analyze the association of sexual maturation\nwith excess body weight and height in children and adolescents.\nMethods: This was a cross-sectional study performed in FlorianÃ?³polis city, Brazil, in 2007, with 2339 school children,\naged 8ââ?¬â??14 years (1107 males). Selection was based on a probabilistic, cluster-stratified sampling technique. School\nchildren were classified according to the presence of excess body weight, using sex- and age-specific body mass\nindex (BMI) cutoff points. Z-scores were calculated from height and BMI data. Sexual maturation was self-assessed\naccording to Tanner stages of development. Subjects were ranked based on tertiles of sexual maturation\n(early, normal and late) for each stage of development. Poisson and linear regression models were used.\nResults: Compared to the reference group (normal sexual maturation), early maturing females had higher\nprevalence of excess weight (adjusted prevalence ratio: 1.70; 95% CI: 1.24 to 2.33) and increased height-for-age\n(adjusted Ã?Ÿ: 0.37; 95% CI: 0.14 to 0.59), while late maturing females had lower prevalence of excess weight (adjusted\nprevalence ratio: 0.57; 95% CI: 0.37 to 0.87) and decreased height-for-age (adjusted Ã?Ÿ: -0.38; 95% CI: -0.56 to -0.20).\nIn males, early and late sexual maturation were associated with increased (adjusted Ã?Ÿ: 0.37; 95% CI: 0.14 to 0.59) and\ndecreased (adjusted Ã?Ÿ: -0.38; 95% CI: -0.56 to -0.20) height-for-age, respectively.\nConclusion: Early sexual maturation is associated with excess body weight in females and with greater height-for-age\nin both sexes.
Loading....