Anthropometric studies of healthy, athletic girls 9 to 12 years of age

Norm values of the bodily efficiency inform about the level of health and development of the growing-up generation. Anthropometric results from 550 healthy sporting girls of the town Weissenfels aged 9 till 12 years are given in tabulated form (means and standard deviations from 8 anthropometric parameters) differentiated in regard of the biological age of the girls. Impressive differences can be seen. Consequences for the practice are discussed. The given results may be compared with the corresponding ones for boys also aged from 9 till 12, presented before in this journal.     

The effect of dietary calcium intake on bone mineral density in healthy adolescent girls and young women in southern Italy.

BACKGROUND: The association between forearm bone mineral areal density (BMD) and dietary calcium, anthropometric characteristics, puberty, and physical activity was studied for the first time in 200 girls (aged 11-15 years) and 100 women (aged 20-23 years) living in Southern Italy. METHODS: The BMD was assessed by dual energy x-ray absorptiometry at ultradistal (ud) and proximal (pr) radial sites and dietary calcium was evaluated using Food Frequency Questionnaires and detailed 3-day food records. RESULTS: For population samples grouped according to low and high calcium intake levels, forearm densities were quite similar among both girls and women. Independently of calcium intake, girls displayed strong correlations between ud/pr-BMD and age, bone age, weight, height and BMI. Furthermore, in girls of similar age and BMI, radial densities were substantially increased following menarche. Positive relationships between weight, BMI and both ud/pr-BMD were only evident in women with high calcium intake. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that different calcium intake values do not appear to affect forearm mineral densities at the ages investigated, however puberty represents the major event in radial bone mass acquisition during adolescence.     

Preventing and treating obesity in girls and young women to curb the epidemic

Obesity and its serious comorbidities, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, hypertension, and dyslipidemia, have reached epidemic proportions in adults and children. Female obesity is more prevalent and, thus, has greater epidemiological importance: mothers transmit the disease epigenetically and genetically. Maternal obesity affects maternal health, pregnancy outcome, and fetal, neonatal, childhood, and ultimately adult morbidity and mortality. Obesity is easy to diagnose, as are most of its risk factors, yet very little progress has been made in preventing the disease. During a brief period of rapid early growth, there is imprinting of antecedents of adult obesity and obesity-related disease. Because of the rapidity of this early growth and the relative brevity of the critical period, early recognition and prompt intervention are necessary and possibly sufficient to prevent the development of obesity. Identification of inappropriate rapid weight gain through frequent weighing should trigger immediate adjustment of energy intake, a simple intervention in bottle-fed infants, the ones at greatest risk for becoming obese. This review presents a step-care strategy with fail-safe action levels starting with maternal education and diet, exercise, and behavior modification for mother and child and progressing to drug treatment and, in selected cases, laparoscopic surgery for young women of childbearing age in whom other measures have failed. This approach is predicated on the assumption that careful monitoring and responsive supplementation of potential deficiencies is easier to achieve, more cost-effective, and safer than effectively treating manifest obesity and its comorbidities in adults.     

Body size,fat distribution,menarcheal age and blood pressure in 14-year-old girls

Background: The relationships between body size and fatness and blood pressure are generally acknowledged. The majority of the few studies that have examined the effect of fat distribution and maturation rate on blood pressure have used secondary sex characteristics as the measure of maturity. The aim of the present study is to examine the associations between blood pressure and relative weight, fat distribution, recalled menarcheal age and occurrence of menstruation (yes/no) in a sample comprising of 1149 14-year-old girls. Methods: Systolic and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), height, weight and body circumferences were measured using standard protocols. Fatness was expressed as body mass index (BMI, kg/m²), whereas fat distribution was estimated by using waist-to-hip ratio. The girls' maturity status was assessed from exact recalled date of menarche. One-way analysis of covariance and multiple linear regression analyses were used to determine the strength of association among systolic blood pressure (SBP), DBP and BMI, menarcheal age and indices of fat distribution. Results and conclusion: Height and BMI are significantly associated with SBP. Relative weight is the most important factor related to SBP independently of chronological age and maturity status. Height and age at menarche are significantly associated with DBP. Height of 14-year-old girls shows the same strength of association with SBP and DBP, whereas maturity status negatively correlates with DBP. Fat distribution shows no effect on the level of DBP in girls.     

青春期发育年龄与18岁身高的关系

有研究表明,月经初潮年龄、生长突增年龄等发育事件均与成年期身高有关,但由于男性青春期发育事件不易确定,关于男生的相关研究则更为少见.2013年,Yousefi等从1989-1990年英国怀特岛出生队列研究中选取随访至18岁的样本人群1313名进行研究,其中男性653名、女性660名,分别分析男性、女性的生长突增、体毛生长、皮肤变化、声音改变或乳房发育、胡须生长或月经初潮等5种青春期发育事件与18岁身高的关系.结果发现,女性乳房发育较晚、月经初潮较迟者身高较高,乳房发育、月经初潮年龄每推迟1岁,18岁身高平均分别增加0.46 cm和0.59 cm.     

中国9~14岁青春期女生睡眠时间与月经初潮的关系

目的 探讨2014年中国9~14岁青春期女生月经初潮与睡眠时间的关系,为进一步研究青春期发育的影响因素提供科学依据。方法 选取2014年全国学生体质与健康调研数据中9~14岁青春期女生的身高、体重、月经初潮情况和睡眠时间等数据。将研究对象分为睡眠充足组和睡眠不足组,月经初潮情况由女性内科医师询问,只询问“已”、“未”,不问具体日期。采用Logistic回归模型和多水平模型进行统计学分析。 结果 研究共纳入48 096名女生。其中,9~14岁女生的平均睡眠充足报告率为31.34%(15 074/48 096),平均月经初潮报告率为50.13%(24 112/48 096)。从总体上看,月经初潮报告率随年龄增加而增加。其中,在睡眠充足女生组中,月经初潮报告率从9岁的0.97%(22/2 258)增长到14岁的95.87%(1 832/1 911);睡眠不足女生组中,月经初潮报告率从9岁的1.52%(52/3 423)增长到14岁的97.32%(6 720/6 905)。除9岁外,各年龄段中睡眠不足组的女生月经初潮的比例均高于睡眠充足组,且差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。在控制片区、身高、BMI等因素后,相对于睡眠不足组,睡眠充足组女生月经初潮发生较晚(OR＝0.73,95%CI:0.69~0.77),在各年龄段(除9岁外)中,相对于睡眠不足组,睡眠充足组女生月经初潮发生较晚(OR<1,P<0.05)。多水平模型分析发现,在控制其他因素后,睡眠时间越长,月经初潮的发生越晚(OR＝0.90,95%CI:0.87~0.92)。同时,月经初潮与睡眠时间的关系在省份水平不具有组内聚集性(ICC<0.01),在年龄水平具有较明显的组内聚集性(ICC=0.61)。 结论 青春期女生的睡眠情况与月经初潮是否发生有着密切联系,进一步影响女生青春期的发育与性成熟。应当采取有效的措施确保儿童青少年的正常睡眠时间,保证儿童青少年的健康成长。     

Prenatal alcohol exposure, birthweight, and measures of child size from birth to age 14 years.

OBJECTIVES. The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of prenatal alcohol exposure on offspring's weight, height, and head circumference from birth through 14 years of age. METHODS. This longitudinal prospective study examined a cohort of approximately 500 offspring (oversampled for heavier drinkers and stratified for smoking from a population of 1529 women in prenatal care at the 5th gestational month) at birth; 8 and 18 months; and 4, 7, and 14 years of age. Covariates were examined by means of multiple regression. Birth size measures were also examined as predictors of 7-year neurodevelopmental outcomes. RESULTS. Effects of alcohol were observed on weight, length, and head circumference at birth; these effects were not altered by adjustment for covariates including smoking. However, the birthweight effect is clearly transient: although alcohol effects remained observable at 8 months, they were not measurable thereafter through age 14 years. CONCLUSIONS. In this population-based sample, neither birthweight nor any later size measure was as useful an indicator of the enduring effects of prenatal alcohol exposure as were certain neurodevelopmental outcomes.     

The market for nurse practitioner services among women 18 to 40 years of age

Telephone interviews were conducted with a stratified random sample of 331 greater New Haven, Connecticut area residents to examine factors associated with using nurse practitioner (NP) services. About 81% of women aged 18 to 40 (N = 109) said they would seek NP care if services were covered under health insurance. Women who said they would seek care were more likely to be dissatisfied with their present health care, to have less education, and to be from lower income families with two or more members. Women in this age group were more likely to use NP services and to seek NP care if care cost the same or less than MD care than all others in the original study sample. They were also more likely to demonstrate innovative purchase behavior and to have knowledge of nurse practitioners, and less likely to perceive NP care as different from MD care. Analysis of the characteristics, attitudes, and values of women aged 18 to 40 years reveals that they are the most likely target market for NP services.     

The social and gynaecological background of 218 sterilized women

This is the first part of a longitudinal follow-up study of 218 consecutively sterilized women. The operations were performed at the Gynaecological Department of Akershus Central Hospital during the period May 22nd 1973 to February 1, 1974. The mean age of the women was 33.5 years, their mean parity 2.8. They could not be distinguished from the women of the same age in the county at large with regard to incomes, education or housing conditions. The usage of contraception was widespread, but not consistent. Fifty-eight per cent of the operations were performed postabortion, 69% of the women had at least one, 21% at least two induced abortions before the sterilization. Family planning was the predominant stated motive for sterilization, and the present study indicates that the sterilization legislation of 1934 was outdated some years before it was succeeded by a new law. Sterilization was suggested by the doctor in 40%, at abortion application in 30%.     

The relationship between intimate partner violence and probable depression among adolescent girls and young women in Lilongwe,Malawi

ABSTRACT

This analysis estimates prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) and its association with probable depression among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in Lilongwe, Malawi, and whether partner’s controlling behaviour modifies this relationship. Baseline data was utilised from the Girl Power-Malawi study of 1000 15–24-year-old AGYW in Lilongwe. Emotional, physical, and sexual IPV experiences with a current or recent partner were measured using the modified Conflict Tactics Scale. Probable depression was measured by scoring ≥10 on the Centre for Epidemiologic Studies-Short Depression Scale (CES-D-10). Generalised linear models with log-link and binomial distribution estimated prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association between IPV types and probable depression. Partner’s controlling behaviour was examined as an effect modifier. Participants’ mean age was 19.2 years, with 70% never-married. IPV prevalence varied for emotional (59%), physical (36%), sexual (46%), and all forms (20%). Prevalence of probable depression was 47%. AGYW who experienced each IPV type had a higher prevalence of probable depression: physical (PR:1.54, CI:1.28–1.86), sexual (1.46, CI:1.21–1.75), emotional (1.37, CI:1.14–1.64), all forms (1.72, CI:1.41–2.09). IPV and probable depression were prevalent and strongly associated, especially among AGYW reporting controlling behaviour. Interventions addressing IPV and controlling behaviour may positively impact depression among AGYW.