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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #106126
Title: THE REFERENCE CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MODELS OF BODY COMPOSITION: A CONTEMPORARY COMPARISON

Author
item Ellis, Kenneth
item SHYPAILO, ROMAN - BAYLOR COLL OF MEDICINE
item Abrams, Steven
item Wong, William

Submitted to: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/1/1999
Publication Date: 5/1/2000
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: As a person grows, his or her body size increases, and changes occur in the proportions of bone, muscle, visceral tissue and body fat. The reference growth models used to describe these changes were established 10-20 years ago, and are frequently used by doctors to evaluate proper nutrition and growth. These reference models have provided useful information, but are limited for use only in Caucasian children of average weight and height. W wanted to extend the applicability of these models to children of differing ethnicities. We examined more than 850 white, black and Hispanic children of school age (5 - 18 years) and performed various body composition measurements on all of them. We found that there were slight but significant differences for bone, protein and fat mass, as well as ethnic differences. We propose that the older models will need to be updated in order to adequately describe contemporary-sized children of various ethnic groups. In conducting our study, we have also provided the first useful estimates for the range of normal body composition of children at these ages.

Technical Abstract: Changes in the relative proportions of bone, muscle, water, visceral tissues, and body fat occur during growth. In the 1980s, reference models of body composition for children and adolescents were constructed by adjusting total body water (TBW), total body potassium (TBK), and regional bone mineral (BMC) data from several different Caucasian populations. In our study, we measured TBW, TBK, and total body BMC in 856 healthy European-American, African-American, and Mexican-American children. When we reconstructed the reference models using our contemporary data, we found that the body's bone, protein, and fat compartments are slightly but significantly different from the earlier models. Our study provides the range of normal body composition of healthy children, aged 5 - 18 years, and accounts for differences related to gender and ethnicity.