Growth Status of Rural Youth 7–15 Years in Poland: Variation by Family Size in Decennial Surveys Spanning 1986–2016

Abstract

To evaluate variation in the growth status of rural school children 7–15 years by number of children in the family within and across four decennial surveys spanning 1986–2016. Heights and weights of children in the same 10 communities were measured; BMI was calculated. Samples included 1416 boys and 1326 girls in 1986; 971 boys and 947 girls in 1996; 871 boys and 843 girls in 2006, and 658 boys and 711 girls in 2016. Number of children in the family and level of parental education were reported. MANCOVAs (with age of the child and with age and parental level of education as covariates) were used to evaluate variation in growth status by number of children in the family within each survey, and by number of children in the family across the four surveys. Family size declined across surveys. Variation in body size by family size was not consistent within the four surveys. Estimated secular gains in height, weight, and BMI across the 30-year interval were reasonably similar among boys and girls from families of 1, 2, 3, and 4+ children, while estimated gains between adjacent decadal surveys varied with the number of children in the family and between boys and girls.