Assessment and monitoring of nutritional status of children and adolescents in North Backa Region, Serbia

The present study reports the body mass index (BMI kg/m2) status of a large sample of school children in the North Backa Region of Serbia. Data were obtained from a cross-sectional study of body weight and height recorded during a mass screening of 40 824 children aged 6-18 years in health centers in the North Backa Region in the period 1995 - 2002. BMI percentiles were compared with the US NHANES I reference population and also with the IOTF reference cut-off points for children equivalent to an adult BMI of 25 and 30. Using the NHANES-1 reference we found 6% of children underweight (BMI < P5), 8-10% of children moderately underweight (BMI P5-15) and 19% boys and 17% girls overweight (BMI > P85). Using the IOTF cut-off points equivalent to BMI > 25 in adults indicated that 16% of boys and 15% of girls were overweight, and may be at increased risk of weight-related ill health. Further monitoring of the nutritional status of school children has been established in the region in order to identify trends in childhood obesity and to determine dietary risk factors and allow for early prevention.