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Parent-reported height and weight as sources of bias in survey estimates of childhood obesity.

ABSTRACT: Parental reporting of height and weight was evaluated for US children aged 2-13 years. The prevalence of obesity (defined as a body mass index value (calculated as weight (kg)/height (m)(2)) in the 95th percentile or higher) and its height and weight components were compared in child supplements of 2 nationally representative surveys: the 1996-2008 Children of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Cohort (NLSY79-Child) and the 1997 Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID-CDS). Sociodemographic differences in parent reporting error were analyzed. Error was largest for children aged 2-5 years. Underreporting of height, not overreporting of weight, generated a strong upward bias in obesity prevalence at those ages. Frequencies of parent-reported heights below the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (Atlanta, Georgia) first percentile were implausibly high at 16.5% (95% confidence interval (CI): 14.3, 19.0) in the NLSY79-Child and 20.6% (95% CI: 16.0, 26.3) in the PSID-CDS. They were highest among low-income children at 33.2% (95% CI: 22.4, 46.1) in the PSID-CDS and 26.2% (95% CI: 20.2, 33.2) in the NLSY79-Child. Bias in the reporting of obesity decreased with children's age and reversed direction at ages 12-13 years. Underreporting of weight increased with age, and underreporting of height decreased with age. We recommend caution to researchers who use parent-reported heights, especially for very young children, and offer practical solutions for survey data collection and research on child obesity.

SUBMITTER: Weden MM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3732021 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Parent-reported height and weight as sources of bias in survey estimates of childhood obesity.

Weden Margaret M MM Brownell Peter B PB Rendall Michael S MS Lau Christopher C Fernandes Meenakshi M Nazarov Zafar Z

American journal of epidemiology 20130619 3

Parental reporting of height and weight was evaluated for US children aged 2-13 years. The prevalence of obesity (defined as a body mass index value (calculated as weight (kg)/height (m)(2)) in the 95th percentile or higher) and its height and weight components were compared in child supplements of 2 nationally representative surveys: the 1996-2008 Children of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Cohort (NLSY79-Child) and the 1997 Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Inco ...[more]

PMID: 23785115

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Project description:BackgroundFew data have been published on the validity of classification of overweight and obesity based on self-reported weight in representative samples of Hispanic as compared to other American populations despite the wide use of such data.ObjectiveTo test the null hypothesis that ethnicity is unrelated to bias of mean body mass index (BMI) and to sensitivity of overweight or obesity (BMI > or = 25 kg/m2) derived from self-reported (SR) versus measured weight and height using measured BMI as the gold standard.DesignCross-sectional survey of a large national sample, the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) conducted in 1988-1994.ParticipantsAmerican men and women aged 20 years and over (n = 15,025).MeasurementsSR height, weight, cigarette smoking, health status, and socio-demographic variables from home interview and measured weight and height.ResultsIn women and Mexican American (MA) men SR BMI underestimated true prevalence rates of overweight or obesity. For other men, no consistent difference was seen. Sensitivity of SR was similar in non-Hispanic European Americans (EA) and non-Hispanic African Americans (AA) but much lower in MA. Prevalence of obesity (BMI > or = 30 kg/m2) is consistently underestimated by self-report, the gap being greater for MA than for other women, but similar for MA and other men. The mean difference between self-reported and measured BMI was greater in MA (men -0.37, women -0.76 kg/m2) than in non-Hispanic EA (men -0.22, women -0.62 kg/m2). In a regression model with the difference between self-reported and measured BMI as the dependent variable, MA ethnicity was a significant (p < 0.01) predictor of the difference in men and in women. The effect of MA ethnicity could not be explained by socio-demographic variables, smoking or health status.ConclusionUnder-estimation of the prevalence of overweight or obesity based on height and weight self-reported at interview varied significantly among ethnic groups independent of other variables.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Electronic health (eHealth) interventions for children often rely on parent-reported child anthropometric measures. However, limited studies have assessed parental accuracy in reporting child height and weight via Web-based approaches. OBJECTIVE:The objective of this study was to determine the accuracy of parent-reported child height and weight, as well as body mass index and weight category that we calculated from these data. We also aimed to explore whether parent report was influenced by age, sex, weight status, or exposure to participation in a 12-week brief Web-based family lifestyle intervention. METHODS:This study was a secondary analysis of data from a 12-week childhood obesity pilot randomized controlled trial in families with children aged 4 to 11 years in Australia. We asked parents to report demographic information, including child height and weight, using an online survey before their child's height and weight were objectively measured by a trained research assistant at baseline and week 12. We analyzed data using the Lin concordance correlation coefficient (?c, ranging from 0 [poor] to ±1 [perfect] concordance), Cohen kappa coefficient, and multivariable linear regression models. RESULTS:There were 42 families at baseline and 35 families (83%) at week 12. Overall, the accuracy of parent-reported child height was moderate (?c=.94), accuracy of weight was substantial (?c=.96), and accuracy of calculated body mass index was poor (?c=.63). Parents underreported child height and weight, respectively, by 0.9 cm and 0.5 kg at baseline and by 0.2 cm and 1.6 kg after participating in a 12-week brief Web-based family lifestyle intervention. The overall interrater agreement of child body mass index category was moderate at baseline (?=.59) and week 12 (?=.54). The weight category calculated from 74% (n=31) and 70% (n=23) of parent-reported child height and weight was accurate at baseline and week 12, respectively. Parental age was significantly (95% CI -0.52 to -0.06; P=.01) associated with accuracy of reporting child height. Child age was significantly (95% CI -2.34 to -0.06; P=.04) associated with reporting of child weight. CONCLUSIONS:Most Australian parents were reasonably accurate in reporting child height and weight among a group of children aged 4 to 11 years. The weight category of most of the children when calculated from parent-reported data was in agreement with the objectively measured data despite the body mass index calculated from parent-reported data having poor concordance at both time points. Online parent-reported child height and weight may be a valid method of collecting child anthropometric data ahead of participation in a Web-based program. Future studies with larger sample sizes and repeated measures over time in the context of eHealth research are warranted. Future studies should consider modeling the impact of calibration equations applied to parent-reported anthropometric data on study outcomes.

Dataset Information

Parent-reported height and weight as sources of bias in survey estimates of childhood obesity.

Publications

Parent-reported height and weight as sources of bias in survey estimates of childhood obesity.

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