Comparative growth of primary schoolchildren from one and two parent families.

Abstract

Data drawn from the National [UK] Study of Health and Growth enabled an examination to be made of the attained height, weight-for-height and triceps skinfold of children from 1- to 2-parent families. Children from 1-parent families were shorter than children from 2-parent families; once heights had been adjusted for birthweight, number of siblings, mother''s height, father''s height and mother''s education, this was no longer the case. An examination of the adjusting factors showed that low birthweights and shorter parents accounted for the shorter stature of the 1-parent family children. An examination of weight-for-height and triceps skinfold measurements indicated an increased tendency towards obesity in the 1-parent family children, although this difference was not statistically significant. The higher prevalence of low birthweights and shorter parents that account for the shorter stature of 1-parent children are factors that cannot be ignored in a consideration of the health and growth of this group of children, and obesity may be a potential health problem among the 1-parent family children.