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This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: AJPH.2004.054015v1 95/9/1588    most recent Submit a response Purchase Article View Shopping Cart Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (5) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Kim, J. Articles by Peterson, K. E. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Kim, J. Articles by Peterson, K. E. Related Collections Obesity, Overweight, Underweight School Health Other Child and Adolescent Health Epidemiology Screening Surveillance

Juhee Kim, ScD, Aviva Must, PhD, Garrett M. Fitzmaurice, ScD, Matthew W. Gillman, MD, SM, Virginia Chomitz, PhD, Ellen Kramer, ScD, Robert McGowan, EdD and Karen E. Peterson, ScD, RD

Juhee Kim is with the Departments of Nutrition and Society, Human Development and Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Mass, and the Institute for Community Health, Cambridge, Mass. Aviva Must is with the Department of Public Health and Family Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston. Garrett M. Fitzmaurice is with the Department of Biostatistics, Harvard School of Public Health, and the Division of General Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Matthew W. Gillman is with the Department of Ambulatory Care and Prevention, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Harvard Medical School, and the Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health. Virginia Chomitz is with the Institute for Community Health. Ellen Kramer is with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Boston. Robert McGowan is with the Cambridge Public Schools, Cambridge, Mass. Karen E. Peterson is with the Departments of Nutrition and Society, Human Development and Health, Harvard School of Public Health.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Juhee Kim, ScD, Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115 (e-mail: juheekim{at}hsph.harvard.edu).

Objectives. To monitor annual changes in weight status, we determined incidence and remission rates of overweight among school-aged children with longitudinal school-based surveillance.

Methods. We estimated 1-year changes in weight status among students enrolled in public schools in Cambridge, Mass. Physical education teachers measured height and weight annually. Adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were estimated via multivariate logistic regression, accounting for repeated observations of individual children across years.

Results. The 1-year incidence of overweight was 4%, and the remission rate was 15%. Among overweight children, 85% remained overweight at a 1-year follow-up, while 18% of children at risk for overweight became overweight. Overweight incidence rates were higher among children aged 7 and 8 years than among those aged 11 to 13 years (boys: OR=1.68; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.14, 2.47; girls: OR=1.86; 95% CI=1.25, 2.77).

Conclusions. Both incidence and remission rates were higher among younger children. Children who were at risk for overweight were more likely to change their weight status than those who were already overweight. Our results support targeting overweight prevention efforts toward younger children and children at risk for overweight.