Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants
Abstract Background Appropriate body constitution during childhood is important for future health. However, it has been suggested that thinness is increasing among adolescent girls and boys in Japan. Since misreporting of height/weight may be a possible reflection of the child's ideal body imag...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2023-04-01
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| Series: | BMC Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-15682-z |
| _version_ | 1827956544741834752 |
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| author | Sachie Mori Keiko Asakura Satoshi Sasaki Yuji Nishiwaki |
| author_facet | Sachie Mori Keiko Asakura Satoshi Sasaki Yuji Nishiwaki |
| author_sort | Sachie Mori |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Appropriate body constitution during childhood is important for future health. However, it has been suggested that thinness is increasing among adolescent girls and boys in Japan. Since misreporting of height/weight may be a possible reflection of the child's ideal body image, we investigated the magnitude and direction of height/weight misreporting and its determinants among Japanese young adolescents. Methods A total of 1019 children in public primary schools were included in the analysis. Both measured and self-reported values of height/weight were obtained. Misreporting of height/weight was calculated by subtracting the measured value from the self-reported value. The association between misreporting and several variables such as the BMI z-score of individuals and body constitution of surrounding children was explored by multivariate linear mixed models. Results As BMI z-score increased, ‘overreporting’ of height by boys and ‘underreporting’ of height by girls became larger (p = 0.06 in boys, p = 0.02 in girls). Both boys and girls with a larger body size tended to underreport their weight (p < 0.01 in boys, p < 0.01 in girls). Boys who belonged to a school with a larger average BMI z-score were more likely to overreport their weight. This tendency was not observed for girls. Conclusions Self-reported height/weight was generally accurate in Japanese primary school children. However, even primary school children misreported their height/weight intentionally like adults, possibly due to social pressure to lose weight or that not to stand out. Thus, health education about appropriate body constitution should be provided from the beginning of adolescence, particularly for girls. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T15:05:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c7b63234c3814098b2a5824bee9bbe19 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2458 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T15:05:31Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-c7b63234c3814098b2a5824bee9bbe192023-04-30T11:30:40ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582023-04-0123111010.1186/s12889-023-15682-zMisreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinantsSachie Mori0Keiko Asakura1Satoshi Sasaki2Yuji Nishiwaki3Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Toho University Graduate School of MedicineDepartment of Environmental and Occupational Health, School of Medicine, Toho UniversityDepartment of Social and Preventive Epidemiology, School of Public Health, the University of TokyoDepartment of Environmental and Occupational Health, School of Medicine, Toho UniversityAbstract Background Appropriate body constitution during childhood is important for future health. However, it has been suggested that thinness is increasing among adolescent girls and boys in Japan. Since misreporting of height/weight may be a possible reflection of the child's ideal body image, we investigated the magnitude and direction of height/weight misreporting and its determinants among Japanese young adolescents. Methods A total of 1019 children in public primary schools were included in the analysis. Both measured and self-reported values of height/weight were obtained. Misreporting of height/weight was calculated by subtracting the measured value from the self-reported value. The association between misreporting and several variables such as the BMI z-score of individuals and body constitution of surrounding children was explored by multivariate linear mixed models. Results As BMI z-score increased, ‘overreporting’ of height by boys and ‘underreporting’ of height by girls became larger (p = 0.06 in boys, p = 0.02 in girls). Both boys and girls with a larger body size tended to underreport their weight (p < 0.01 in boys, p < 0.01 in girls). Boys who belonged to a school with a larger average BMI z-score were more likely to overreport their weight. This tendency was not observed for girls. Conclusions Self-reported height/weight was generally accurate in Japanese primary school children. However, even primary school children misreported their height/weight intentionally like adults, possibly due to social pressure to lose weight or that not to stand out. Thus, health education about appropriate body constitution should be provided from the beginning of adolescence, particularly for girls.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-15682-zMisreportingHeightWeightBMI z-scoreBody size perceptionPrimary school children |
| spellingShingle | Sachie Mori Keiko Asakura Satoshi Sasaki Yuji Nishiwaki Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants BMC Public Health Misreporting Height Weight BMI z-score Body size perception Primary school children |
| title | Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants |
| title_full | Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants |
| title_fullStr | Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants |
| title_full_unstemmed | Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants |
| title_short | Misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in Japan: a cross-sectional study on individual and environmental determinants |
| title_sort | misreporting of height and weight by primary school children in japan a cross sectional study on individual and environmental determinants |
| topic | Misreporting Height Weight BMI z-score Body size perception Primary school children |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-15682-z |
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