Autism Spectrum Disorder and Obesity in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis |
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| Authors: | Olivia Sammels Louise Karjalainen Jovanna Dahlgren Elisabet Wentz |
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| Affiliation: | aRegional Rehabilitation Centre, Queen Silvia Children''s Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden;bDepartment of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden;cDepartment of Pediatrics, Institute of Clinical Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden |
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| Abstract: | IntroductionChildren and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) appear to be at greater risk of excess weight gain. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine whether children with ASD have a greater prevalence of obesity and whether the prevalence of ASD is higher in children with obesity.MethodsWe conducted a systematic search on PubMed, Scopus, and PsychINFO until May 21, 2021. We used the meta package in the R in order to calculate the pooled prevalence and relative risk of obesity in children with ASD.ResultsWe found 20 eligible studies investigating the prevalence of obesity in children with ASD, with the prevalence ranging from 7.9 to 31.8% and from 1.4 to 23.6% among controls. All but three studies originated from the USA. The proportion of children with obesity in ASD populations was 17% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 13–22). The relative risk of obesity in children with ASD compared with control children was 1.58 (95% CI: 1.34–1.86). There were no controlled studies reporting on the prevalence of ASD in children with obesity.ConclusionChildren and adolescents with ASD have a higher prevalence of obesity than healthy controls. There is a need for further prevalence studies of obesity in children with ASD, especially outside the USA, since the few European studies carried out have failed to show a significant difference between obesity prevalence in children with and without ASD. There is no knowledge at all regarding the prevalence of ASD among children with obesity. |
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| Keywords: | Obesity Autism Children Review |
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