Overweight and Obesity in High School Students of 15-18 ages. A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to evaluate and identifying the level of excess weight and obesity in older students between 15 and 18 years, as important benchmarks of the level of health in order to update the recommendations regarding the promotion of an active and healthy lifestyle. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 400 subjects, (186 boys and 214 girls), aged 15 to 18. Anthropometric data including: body height, body weight, Body Mass Index (BMI). Participants' BMI was estimated using the Percentile BMI calculator for children and teenagers aged 2 to 19. Study adolescents were defined as underweight, normal (healthy) weight, overweight, and obese according to the CDC child growth characteristics for age, sex, and BMI. 350 (85.5%) subjects were healthy weight; 26 respondents (6.5%) were overweight, 17 (4.25%), were obese, while 7 (1.75%) underweight. The analysis of the individual results of male and female subjects points to increased values of the body mass of males (18.81%), compared to female pupils (3%). Out of a total of 186 male students, 10.75% were in the overweight category, and 8.06% were categorized as obese, in constrast 2.80% of the girls were overweight and (1%<), in the obese category, which is an outstanding result, where obesity practically does not exist. According to the results of this study (for both sexes), in relation to gender, there were more malnourished girls (2.33%), compared to boys (1%<). Among high school students in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the number of children with overweight and obesity is relatively low compared to data from other countries. Based on the relevant results of this study, we consider it necessary to update strategies for promoting an active and healthy lifestyle regarding physical activity and eating habits for adolescents in relation to the specifics of the countries of residence and European trends. Keywords: BMI; students; overweight; obesity; weight status category; high school.