Influences of socioeconomic factors on childhood and adolescent overweight by gender in Korea: cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative sample

BACKGROUND Childhood and adolescent overweight is a recognized public health concern as the prevalence is already high and continues to increase. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and overweight status by gender among Korean children and adolescents. METHODS The data used in this study were taken from the 2009 Korean Survey on the Obesity of Youth and Children. Underweight individuals (n=1,010) and children and adolescents whose age, height, or weight information was missing (n=591) were excluded from the data set, resulting in a total of 8,555 subjects who were included in this analysis. Subjective SES, parental education level, parental occupational status, and family structure were used to measure parental SES. Chi-squared tests were used for univariable analysis and multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted for multivariable analysis. RESULTS After adjusting for subject's characteristics including gender, age, parental interest in weight management of children, parental body shape, economic status variables that significantly influenced childhood overweight were identified. Low economic status increased the probability of childhood overweight (odds ratio, 1.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.1-1.5). CONCLUSIONS There is an inverse association between parental SES variables and the overweight status of children and adolescents. Additionally, parental body shape is an important factor that influences childhood and adolescent overweight.