Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Childhood Growth Trajectories

• Published in: Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities Vol. 9; no. 4; pp. 1308 - 1314
• Main Authors: Pineros-Leano, María, Grafft, Natalie
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.08.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Age; Birth; Birth weight; Body mass index; Body weight; Childbirth & labor; Childhood; Childhood obesity; Children; Children & youth; Cultural differences; Epidemiology; Ethnic differences; Ethnic groups; Ethnicity; Health disparities; Health policy; Latin American cultural groups; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Mental health; Minority & ethnic groups; Minority groups; Obesity; Overweight; Policy making; Poverty; Public health; Quality of Life Research; Race; Race factors; Racial inequality; Social Inequality; Social Structure; Standard scores; Variables; United States > US; Childhood obesity; Longitudinal data; Racial disparities; Ethnic disparities; BMI
• ISSN: 2197-3792; 2196-8837
• DOI: 10.1007/s40615-021-01071-y

Childhood overweight and obesity are a primary social and public health concern. Over the past 30 years, rates of childhood overweight and obesity in the United States of America (USA) have drastically increased, particularly among Black and Latino/a populations. However, they tend to be underrepresented in the childhood obesity literature. This study expands previous literature by identifying different BMI growth trajectories for Black, Latino/a, and White children from birth to age nine. This study found a high prevalence rate of overweight and obesity in a predominantly low-income minority group. Using growth-based trajectory modeling, this study also found different growth trajectories by racial/ethnic groups, with Latino/a children having the most concerning growth trajectories from birth to 9 years. These findings demonstrate that ethnic/racial disparities in childhood overweight and obesity start as early as birth, indicating the need to devote more attention from researchers and health policy-makers to address these disparities as early as possible.