Author(s)

Keiko Kasagi¹, Yuko Hayashi², Ryoko Ito³

¹Department of Community Health, Faculty of Health and Welfare, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan.
²Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Health and Welfare, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan.
³Department of Maternal Health, Faculty of Health and Welfare, Prefectural University of Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan.

Obesity in childhood or adolescence has been recognized to be a risk factor for the onset of lifestyle-related diseases, not only in healthy children, but also in children with developmental disorders. Therefore, this study was conducted to examine the characteristics of obesity and thinness as assessed by the body fat percentage among children with developmental disorders during certain growth periods. It was also designed to investigate those factors associated with obesity and thinness based on a lifestyle and behavioral questionnaire. The subjects included 260 children from 5 to 18 years old with developmental disorders. The results of the study showed that a decrease in thinness and increase in obesity with ageing exhibited more noticeable trends among those children with mental retardation. The factors associated with obesity in children with developmental disorders were characterized by the dietary content, eating behaviors, and food preferences particular to such children, as well as low physical activity and a family history of obesity. The results of this study suggested the importance of continuous guidance along with family participation in order to improve obesity among children with developmental disorders, while focusing on the characteristics of certain growth periods.

Obesity, Thinness, Children with Developmental Disorders, Lifestyle Factors, Body Fat Percentage

Kasagi, K. , Hayashi, Y. and Ito, R. (2018) Characteristics and Factors Associated with Obesity and Thinness among Children with Developmental Disorders. Open Journal of Nursing, 8, 689-696. doi: 10.4236/ojn.2018.89051.