Pediatr Gastroenterol Hepatol Nutr.  2017 Sep;20(3):186-193. 10.5223/pghn.2017.20.3.186.

The Association between Socioeconomic Status and Obesity in Korean Children: An Analysis of the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2012)

• Lee HJ
• Kim SH
• Choi SH
• Lee JS

• KMID: 2390550
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5223/pghn.2017.20.3.186

Abstract

PURPOSE
Obesity is one of the most common health problems among children and its prevalence has increased in recent decades. Socioeconomic status (SES) is a well-known risk factor for childhood obesity although the associations were different across countries. Previous studies in other countries have reported a positive association between childhood obesity and SES in developing countries, and inverse correlation has been reported in developed countries. For this reason, we wanted to investigate the relationship between SES and obesity in Korean children.
METHODS
Data were acquired 3,095 boys and girls who participated in the fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which was conducted from 2010 to 2012. Body mass index was calculated from measured anthropometric data using the 2007 Korean National Growth Charts.
RESULTS
Upon univariate analysis, we did not find any statistically significant differences in the parental employment status, monthly family income between children with and without obesity. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed childhood obesity was positively associated with maternal overweight (OR, 1.889; 95% CI, 1.079-3.309), maternal obesity (OR, 3.409; 95% CI, 2.228-5.215) and paternal obesity (OR, 2.135; 95% CI, 1.257-3.627).
CONCLUSION
The present study showed that socioeconomic status might not an important risk factor for obesity in Korean children. These results warrant further studies to clarify the association between SES and obesity in Korean children.

Keyword

Obesity; Income; Education

MeSH Terms

Body Mass Index
Child*
Developed Countries
Developing Countries
Education
Employment
Female
Growth Charts
Humans
Korea*
Logistic Models
Nutrition Surveys*
Obesity*
Overweight
Parents
Pediatric Obesity
Prevalence
Risk Factors
Social Class*

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