The Association between Body Weight Misclassification in Adolescence and Body Fat and Waist Circumference in Adulthood: A Longitudinal Study.

This study examined the longitudinal association between adolescent body weight misclassifications and body fat and waist circumference during adulthood. A sample was derived from a large Australian birth cohort study. The data analyses were restricted to 1002 participants for whom data on both measured and perceived weight at a 14-year follow-up and the actual measure of adult body fat and waist circumference at a 30-year follow-up were available. To determine misclassifications, we compared the perceived weight with the measured weight. The results were presented as means and mean differences (with a 95% confidence interval) of the body fat percentages and waist circumference levels across the weight misclassification groups, adjusting for potential covariates. For both male and female adolescents, weight underestimation was significantly associated with an increase in body fat percentages and waist circumference in adulthood as compared to those who correctly estimated their weight. In the mean difference analyses, adolescent males and females who underestimated their weight were found to have significantly higher body fat, and waist circumference means than those who correctly estimated their weight in the unadjusted and adjusted comparisons. The adolescent males who overestimated their weight had higher body fat, and waist circumference means when they reached adulthood. Increased awareness of weight misclassification and actual weight among adolescents might contribute to better control of weight gain in adulthood.

Predictors of adolescents' weight misclassification: A longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVE: To examine adolescents' and mothers' misclassification of the adolescents' body weight and associated early life predictors. METHODS: Data are from a sample of women and their children who were part of a longitudinal Australian birth cohort study. We analysed data of 3925 adolescents, 3721 mothers, and 2593 mother-offspring pairs. At the 14-year follow up, we derived adolescents' body weight category (underweight, normal or overweight) based on their measured height and weight and adolescents reported their similar subjective weight categories. Similarly, mothers reported perceived weight of their adolescents' offspring. We compared objectively measured weight with subjective weight perceptions to identify misclassifications. Possible predictors of weight misclassification were taken from pregnancy, childhood and the adolescent period. RESULTS: Almost a third of adolescents and a quarter of mothers misclassified the adolescents' body weight. Underestimation was observed more often in overweight adolescents. Overestimation was observed more often in underweight adolescents. More than a third of underweight adolescents and almost half of mothers of underweight children overestimated the adolescent's body weight. Normal weight females overestimated their body weight more than their males' counterparts. Predictor of misclassification included being female; dieting to lose weight; having over or underweight mothers; and having high level of poor mental health. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this study suggest that adolescent weight misclassification is common across all BMI categories. Being female, dieting to lose weight, poor mental health and maternal BMI status predict misclassification. Further studies are needed to evaluate the population health significance of weight misclassifications.

Trends of reported human cases of brucellosis, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 2004-2012.

Human brucellosis is an important zoonotic disease and is especially concerning in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), where livestock importation is significant. We analyzed reported human brucellosis disease trends in KSA over time to help policymakers understand the magnitude of the disease and guide the design of prevention and control measures. By using data from the national registry from 2004 to 2012, we calculated the cumulative numbers by age group and months. Trends of incidence rates (IRs) by gender, nationality, and region were also calculated. We found that there was a greater number of cases (19,130) in the 15-44 years age group than in any other age group. The IRs significantly decreased from 22.9 in 2004 [95% confidence interval (CI)=22.3, 23.5] to 12.5 in 2012 (95% CI=12.1, 13). Males had a significantly greater IR than females. Most cases were reported during spring and summer seasons. The IR of Saudi citizens was significantly greater than that of non-Saudis, but this difference reduced over time. The IRs of Al-Qassim, Aseer, and Hail were in the highest 25th percentile. Young, male Saudi citizens living in highly endemic areas were at greatest risk of acquiring brucellosis. We recommend vaccinating susceptible animals against brucellosis and increasing the public's awareness of preventive measures.