Orit Pinhas-Hamiel1, Brian Reichman2, Avi Shina3, Estela Derazne4, Dorit Tzur5, Dror Yifrach5, Itay Wiser6, Arnon Afek7, Ari Shamis8, Amir Tirosh9, Gilad Twig10. 1. Pediatric Endocrine and Diabetes Unit, Edmond and Lily Safra Children's Hospital, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat-Gan, Israel; Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. 2. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; The Women and Children's Health Research Unit, Gertner Institute, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel. 3. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; The Israel Defense Forces Medical Corps, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel; Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel. 4. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; The Israel Defense Forces Medical Corps, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel. 5. The Israel Defense Forces Medical Corps, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel. 6. Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Tzrifin, Israel. 7. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; Israel Ministry of Health, Jerusalem, Israel. 8. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; Central Management, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel. 9. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; The Center for Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel; The Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Hypertension, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; The Dr. Pinchas Bornstein Talpiot Medical Leadership Program, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat-Gan, Israel. 10. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel; The Israel Defense Forces Medical Corps, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel; The Dr. Pinchas Bornstein Talpiot Medical Leadership Program, Sheba Medical Center, Ramat-Gan, Israel; Department of Medicine 'B', Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Ramat-Gan, Israel. Electronic address: Gilad.Twig@gmail.com.
Abstract
PURPOSE: The secular trend of increasing weight may lead to a decline in height gain compared with the genetic height potential. The impact of weight on height in healthy male and female adolescents compared with their genetic height was assessed. METHODS: Height and weight were measured in Israeli adolescent military recrutees aged 16-19 years between 1967 and 2013. The study population comprised 355,229 recrutees for whom parental height measurements were documented. Subjects were classified into four body mass index percentile groups according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention body mass index percentiles for age and sex:<5th (underweight), 5th-49th (low-normal), 50th-84th (high-normal), and ≥85th (overweight-obese). Short stature was defined as height ≤ third percentile and tall stature as height ≥ 90th percentile for age and sex. RESULTS: Overweight-obese females had a 73% increased risk for short stature (odds ratio [OR]: 1.73, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.51-1.97, p < .001). Conversely, underweight females had a 56% lower risk of short stature (OR: .44, 95% CI = .28-.70, p = .001) and a twofold increased risk for being tall (OR: 2.08, 95% CI = 1.86-2.32, p < .001). Overweight-obese males had a 23% increased risk of being short (OR: 1.23, 95% CI = 1.10-1.37, p < .001). Underweight females were on average 4.1 cm taller than their mid-parental height. CONCLUSIONS: Overweight-obese males and females had an increased risk of being short, and underweight females were significantly taller compared with their genetic height. The significantly increased height among underweight healthy females may reflect a potential loss of height gain in overweight-obese females.
PURPOSE: The secular trend of increasing weight may lead to a decline in height gain compared with the genetic height potential. The impact of weight on height in healthy male and female adolescents compared with their genetic height was assessed. METHODS: Height and weight were measured in Israeli adolescent military recrutees aged 16-19 years between 1967 and 2013. The study population comprised 355,229 recrutees for whom parental height measurements were documented. Subjects were classified into four body mass index percentile groups according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention body mass index percentiles for age and sex:<5th (underweight), 5th-49th (low-normal), 50th-84th (high-normal), and ≥85th (overweight-obese). Short stature was defined as height ≤ third percentile and tall stature as height ≥ 90th percentile for age and sex. RESULTS:Overweight-obese females had a 73% increased risk for short stature (odds ratio [OR]: 1.73, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.51-1.97, p < .001). Conversely, underweight females had a 56% lower risk of short stature (OR: .44, 95% CI = .28-.70, p = .001) and a twofold increased risk for being tall (OR: 2.08, 95% CI = 1.86-2.32, p < .001). Overweight-obese males had a 23% increased risk of being short (OR: 1.23, 95% CI = 1.10-1.37, p < .001). Underweight females were on average 4.1 cm taller than their mid-parental height. CONCLUSIONS:Overweight-obese males and females had an increased risk of being short, and underweight females were significantly taller compared with their genetic height. The significantly increased height among underweight healthy females may reflect a potential loss of height gain in overweight-obese females.