Use of International Physical Activity Questionnaire-short form for assessment of physical activity of children.

Sir,

The article by Ahmed et al. explains the role of altitude, an important environmental determinant, in overweight and obesity in children.[1] Altitude is an important factor that influences physical activity which in turn affects overweight and obesity in children. However, the following issues need to be addressed to clarify the problem.

The authors used International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form-A (IPAQ-SF) to assess physical activity and calculate metabolic equivalent for participants belonging to the age group 10–15 years. However, the IPAQ Guidelines for data processing and analysis clearly indicate that the instrument should be used for ages ranging from 15 to 59 years and that “until further development and testing is undertaken, the use of IPAQ for older and younger age groups is not recommended.”[2]

Moreover, the authors mention that they used WHO-NCHS reference population, but the reference provided discusses the Centers for Disease Control cutoffs which are appropriate for US-children only.[3] It is now agreed that to define cutoffs for overweight and obesity in this age group, WHO cutoffs for school children should be used.[4]

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Conflicts of interest

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