M. Amador et al., ADIPOSITY AND GROWTH - RELATIONSHIP OF STATURE AT 14 YEARS WITH RELATIVE BODY-WEIGHT AT DIFFERENT AGES AND SEVERAL MEASURES OF ADIPOSITY AND BODY BULK, European journal of clinical nutrition, 46(3), 1992, pp. 213-219
A non-probabilistic sample of 354 healthy adolescents (182 boys and 17
2 girls) with ages ranging from 13.6 to 14.5 years was studied. Measur
ements of mid-arm muscle, thigh and leg circumferences, triceps and su
bscapular skinfolds, and records of body weight and height at one, fou
r, six and twelve years of age were available. The sexual maturation s
tage of all subjects was also determined. Height at fourteen years was
found to be significantly associated with relative body weight at dif
ferent ages in both sexes, and particularly with the relative weight a
t twelve months. Height is more strongly related with indicators of le
an body mass than with indicators of adiposity, especially in boys. Th
e stage of sexual development is also an important determinant of stat
ure at fourteen years of age. The results seem to support the hypothes
is that the same factors which increase fat deposition, contribute to
increase lean tissues and linear growth.