Waist Circumference Values According to Height Percentiles: A Proposal to Evaluate Abdominal Obesity in Mexican Children and Adolescents Between 6 and 16 Years of Age

Background and AimsWaist circumference (WC) is a good anthropometric indicator for diagnosing abdominal obesity across different age groups, including children and adolescents. It is unknown whether height may modify this indicator independent of other variables such as age, gender and ethnicity. We undertook this study to determine whether WC of children and adolescents shows variations in size according to height percentiles and propose these values as reference to assess abdominal obesity in children.MethodsWe carried out a cross-sectional analytical study in which weight, height and WC were measured in children and adolescents attending elementary schools in Mexico City. Included in the study were 3378 individuals between 6 and 16 years of age. Using quantile regression, estimated values of WC were obtained according to age and gender for the following percentiles of height: 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th. Likewise, for each of these height percentiles, the following percentiles of WC were calculated: 50th, 75th and 90th.ResultsAmong males, WC values increased 2.0 cm for ten units of height percentiles and 2.5 cm for each year of age. Among females, WC increased 1.0 cm and 2.8 cm, respectively. WC values of individuals of the same age and gender in the lower height percentiles were less than those of individuals in the upper height percentiles.ConclusionsWC demonstrates variations directly associated with height percentiles.