Height development trends among 7-18-year-old school-age children in central plains of China between 2000 and 2019: A serial cross-sectional surveillance study in China

Fanke Zhou; Lifan Ding; Yuxi Li; Jiajia Hu; Junna Zhang; Yixiao Geng; Xiaolei Ban; Wencan Wu; Xiaomin Lou; Xian Wang

doi:10.1016/j.ehb.2024.101467

Height development trends among 7-18-year-old school-age children in central plains of China between 2000 and 2019: A serial cross-sectional surveillance study in China

Econ Hum Biol. 2024 Dec 26:56:101467. doi: 10.1016/j.ehb.2024.101467. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Fanke Zhou¹, Lifan Ding¹, Yuxi Li¹, Jiajia Hu¹, Junna Zhang¹, Yixiao Geng², Xiaolei Ban¹, Wencan Wu¹, Xiaomin Lou¹, Xian Wang³

Affiliations

¹ College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, No.100 Science Avenue, Zhengzhou, Henan 450001, PR China.
² The First Clinical School of Medicine, Zhengzhou University, No.100 Science Avenue, Zhengzhou, Henan 450001, PR China.
³ College of Public Health, Zhengzhou University, No.100 Science Avenue, Zhengzhou, Henan 450001, PR China. Electronic address: wangxian@zzu.edu.cn.

PMID: 39740312
DOI: 10.1016/j.ehb.2024.101467

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze changes in height of 7-18-year-old school-age children in China during the year of 2000-2019.

Methods: We used the survey data from the Chinese National Survey on Students' Constitution and Health in Henan Province for the years 2000, 2005, 2010, 2014, and 2019. Data were categorized into subgroups based on geographic location, gender, and age; mean, standard deviation, and Pearson's correlation coefficient were used to analyze trends in height change among children and adolescents and the correlation between socioeconomic indicators and height change.

Results: The height of children and adolescents in Henan has shown a continuous upward trend. The height difference between urban and rural areas has gradually narrowed but has not disappeared. The correlation of height development trends between neighbouring urban areas was higher than in other areas. The level of medical care was significantly associated with the change in height for both boys (r = 0.950, p = 0.013) and girls (r = 0.897, p = 0.039); GDP per capita (r = 0.940，p = 0.018) was significantly associated with the change in height for boys only.

Conclusion: The height of Chinese children and adolescents will continue to maintain a positive growth trend, but we need to pay attention to the health status and nutritional intake of children and adolescents in economically disadvantaged areas in order to narrow the height disparity between different socio-economic groups.

Keywords: Adolescence; Children; China; Height; Secular change.