The prevalence of obesity in children with autism

[Guest guest]

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2431/10/11

The prevalence of obesity in children with autism: a secondary data analysis

using nationally representative data from the National Survey of Children's

Health

Carol Curtin , E , Aviva Must and Bandini

BMC Pediatrics 2010, 10:11doi:10.1186/1471-2431-10-11

Published: 23 February 2010

Background

The prevalence of childhood obesity has increased dramatically in the last two

decades and numerous efforts to understand, intervene on, and prevent this

significant threat to children's health are underway for many segments of the

pediatric population. Understanding the prevalence of obesity in populations of

children with developmental disorders is an important undertaking, as the

factors that give rise to obesity may not be the same as for typically

developing children, and because prevention and treatment efforts may need to be

tailored to meet their needs and the needs of their families. The goal of the

current study was to estimate the prevalence of obesity in children and

adolescents with autism.

Methods

This study was a secondary data analysis of cross-sectional

nationally representative data collected by telephone interview of

parents/guardians on 85,272 children ages 3-17 from the 2003-2004 National

Survey of Children's Health (NSCH). Autism was determined by response to the

question, " Has a doctor or health professional ever told you that your child has

autism? " Children and adolescents were classified as obese according to CDC

guidelines for body mass index (BMI) for age and sex.

Results

The prevalence of obesity in children with autism was 30.4% compared to 23.6% of

children without autism (p=.075). The unadjusted odds of obesity in children

with autism was 1.42 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00, 2.02, p=.052) compared

to children without autism.

Conclusions

Based on US nationally representative data, children with autism have a

prevalence of obesity at least as high as children overall. These findings

suggest that additional research is warranted to understand better the factors

that influence the development of obesity in this population of children.