Risk Factors of Adolescent Obesity in Taiwan and Its Association with Physical activity, Blood Pressure and Waist Circumference

Purpose: this study was conducted to investigate risk factors of obesity and its associated health problems in adolescence in taiwan. methods: we enrolled 559 adolescent volunteers with equal numbers of females and males in 2008. participants were divided into two groups: obese (body mass index [bmi] ≧95th percentile) and normal-weight adolescents (bmi: 15th ~ 85th percentile). each of them completed a questionnaire about lifestyle and parents’ stature. results: obese mother had high likelihood of having obese girls and boys (p=0.001). obese girls spent more time in watching tv (p=0.03) and had higher frequency of having sweetened soft drinks (p=0.016) than normal-weight group. girls spent more time in tv watching associated higher frequency of having sweetened soft drinks (p=0.012). in boys, this associated with higher frequency of eating snick (p=0.018) and larger waist circumference (p=0.011). boys who had more frequent effective exercise had lower frequency of eating outside (p=0.01) and more services of vegetables (p=0.002). there was no relation between hypertension and adolescent physical activity. regardless of gender, obese group had higher waist circumference and blood pressure than normal-weight group (p<0.001).conclusion: there was a strong association between obese mother and adolescent obesity. more physical activity in adolescents associated with healthier dietary behaviors. obese adolescents have higher waist circumference and blood pressure.