SECULAR CHANGES IN STANDING HEIGHT, SITTING HEIGHT AND SEXUAL-MATURATION OF CHINESE - THE HONG-KONG GROWTH STUDY, 1993

In 1993 a territory-wide cross-sectional growth survey on 25,000 Chine se children from birth to 18 years was performed in Hong Kong. Compare d to the last growth survey in 1963, definite secular changes were obs erved. There was an increase of final adult standing height of 3.6 cm in boys and 2.7 cm in girls, in which 1.8 cm and 0.5 cm respectively f or boys and girls was accounted for by the sitting height. Thus most o f the height increase had occurred in the leg length in girls, but in boys only half of it. The height difference was more marked during the pubertal years because secular change had brought about an earlier se xual maturation, including an advancement of median menarcheal age by 0.5 year, coupled with an earlier growth spurt. This paper also provid es the first growth standards for Chinese from birth to 18 years, with percentile charts on both standing height and sexual maturation in bo ys and girls.