This study had two objectives. First, to determine the prevalence of hollow (high-arched) and flat foot among primary school children in Cracow (Poland). Second, to evaluate the relationship between the type of medial longitudinal arch (MLA; determined by the Clarke’s angle) and degree of fatness. The prevalence of underweight, overweight, and obesity was determined by means of IOTF cut-offs with respect to age and gender. A sample of 1,115 children (564 boys and 551 girls) aged between 3 and 13 years was analyzed. In all age groups, regardless of gender, high-arched foot was diagnosed in the majority of children. A distinct increase in the number of children with high-arched foot was observed between 7- and 8-year olds. Regardless of the gender, high-arched foot was more common among underweight children. In the group of obese children, the biggest differences were attributed to gender. High-arched foot was the most frequently observed among boys. In all gender and obesity level groups, the flat foot was more common among boys than among girls. Conclusions: High-arched foot is the most common foot defect among children 3–13 years old regardless of gender. Flat foot is least frequently observed in children 3–13 years old. A statistic correlation between MLA and adiposity is observed. Stronger correlation is observed among girls.

This study in children aged 6–13 years (n = 1,499) was performed between October 2008 and March 2009. Height and weight measurements were taken to calculate BMI. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was determined by means of IOTF cut-offs with respect to age. Alarming is the fact that the percentage of obese children in Cracow increased dramatically from 1.04% in boys and 0.20% in girls in 1971 to 7% in boys and 3.6% in girls in 2009. In this report, a higher percentage of overweight boys was observed in rural boys (28.14%) than in urban ones (27.31%). Obesity was identified in an almost twice as high percentage of urban boys (7.78%) as in rural ones (3.52%). A higher percentage of overweight girls was registered in rural areas (16.49%) than in urban ones (16.09%). Obesity was prevailing in rural girls (4.12%) relative to their urban counterparts (3.44%). The highest number of overweight urban boys was diagnosed in the group of 12-year-olds (n = 48) and rural boys in the group of 10-year-olds (n = 39), as well as in urban girls aged 11 (n = 17) and rural girls aged 9 (n = 9). The highest number of obesity was observed in rural boys aged 12 (n = 3) and in urban boys aged 9 and 10 (n = 9 in both groups). In the group of girls, obesity prevailed in urban 9-year-olds (n = 5) and in rural 7-year-olds (n = 5). Conclusions: Overweight and obesity affect boys almost twice as frequently as girls. Obesity is twice as frequent in urban boys as in their rural peers.

These results suggest that the type of foot arch is influenced by parameters such as age, sex, and obesity level. High-arched foot seemed to be the most frequent pathologic abnormality in the examined group, and flatfoot, which was predominant in boys and obese children, diminished with age. High-arched foot was a more common MLA type than flatfoot regardless of obesity level assessed on the basis of body mass index and sum of three skinfolds.

SummaryThe problem of overweight and obesity in children and adolescents has been noted in many different countries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the differences in the percentage occurrence of overweight and obesity in Polish children depending on the criteria used, and to evaluate the usefulness of the Polish national database. The study sample comprised 3405 children aged 5-14 years (1674 girls and 1731 boys) from the city of Kraków, Poland, in 2009-2010. The BMI of each child was calculated and classified as overweight or obese according to three different reference BMI cut-offs: the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Polish 2010 standard. To assess the statistical significance of the differences between these three applied reference datasets, a comparison of two proportions was performed and Cohen's kappa coefficient calculated. The prevalences of overweight were 15%, 11.3% and 9.5% (IOTF, CDC, Polish 2010, respectively) among boys and 15.5%, 11.6% and 9.9% among girls. The prevalences of obesity were 3.3%, 6.1% and 5.5% (IOTF, CDC, Polish 2010, respectively) among boys and 3.4%, 6.3% and 5.7% among girls. The different methods used generally showed good agreement. Nevertheless the prevalence of overweight and obesity differed significantly depending on the criteria used. In conclusion, the creation and updating of national databases based on large, representative groups is justified and provides the best reference for regional data. However, in order to ensure the comparability of results with those from other countries, it seems advisable to use cut-offs based on international data as well.

The biological, social and lifestyle factors related to the child's mother significantly determined the child's BMI.