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Total family time participating in WIC does not predict childhood overweight
Author(s) -
Harrison Gail G.,
Jenks Eloise,
Afifi Abdelmonem,
McGregor Samar,
Whaley Shan,
Gomez Judy,
Koleilat Maria
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.22.1_supplement.454.3
Subject(s) - overweight , percentile , medicine , demography , population , obesity , multivariate analysis , pediatrics , family history , childhood obesity , gerontology , environmental health , endocrinology , statistics , mathematics , sociology
Increasing prevalence of overweight in young children is a significant public health problem. This study examines whether the total family time participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) plays a role in risk for early childhood overweight. We conducted a case‐control study with 555 WIC participant children ages 3–5 years who were either overweight (BMI >95 th percentile of reference standard) or normal weight (BMI 25–75 th percentile). The study population had a large Hispanic majority (95%), a group that has the highest rates of overweight young children in the US. Total cumulative history of WIC program participation for the entire family, expressed as person‐years and adjusted for reported breaks in participation, had a median of 12.6 person‐years and did not differ between overweight and normal‐weight children. In multivariate analyses only mother's BMI and child height were significant predictors of child overweight. Number of hours of television watching and number of hours of sleep at night showed slight but non‐significant relationships to overweight risk. There was no indication that cumulative family history of WIC participation influences risk of early childhood overweight. Supported by USDA/CSREES #2005‐35215‐16075.