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Abstract
Background: The waist-to-height index (WHtR) indicates central obesity, which warns of excess fat accumulation in the abdominal area, regardless of whether the body mass index (BMI) is high. Objective: To describe the central obesity status of junior high school students aged 10 - 14 at Nha Trang Secondary School, Thai Nguyen City. Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted on Nha Trang Secondary School students in Thai Nguyen City. The total sample size was 1694 students. The WHtR index > 0.5 was classified as central obesity in both sexes. Results: The prevalence of central obesity in Nha Trang Secondary School students was 62.4%. Central obesity was occupied by 70.7% of female and 29.3% of male students. The rate of central obesity has decreased with advancing age. Factors that likely increased the risk of central obesity were female students (OR = 338.04; 95% CI 193.8 - 589.6), overweight and obese by BMI students (AOR = 20.15; 95% CI 12.2 - 33.2), or triceps subcutaneous skinfold at the cut-off point of overweight (AOR = 3.37; 95% CI 2.1 - 5.3) obesity (AOR = 14.92; 95% CI 7.2 - 30.7). Conclusion: Almost six out of 10 students were classified as central obese. High BMI and triceps subcutaneous skinfold were closely related to central obesity. Female students were at higher risk of central obesity than male students.
| Published | 2025-09-30 | |
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| Issue | Vol. 4 No. 3 (2025) | |
| Section | Original article | |
| DOI | 10.66517/jstmp.2025.3.6 | |
| Keywords | Béo phì trung tâm, Học sinh, THCS, BMI, Thừa cân béo phì Central obesity, Students, Secondary school, BMI, Overweight and obesity |
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