Seven-year stability of indicators of obesity and adipose tissue distribution in the Canadian population

Background The prevention of obesity appears to be a better approach than treatment; thus, the prediction of future obesity from current status is important. Objective The aim of the study was to examine the stability of adiposity and adipose tissue distribution (ATD) in the Canadian population. Design The sample included 1048 males and 1063 females aged 7–69 y at baseline from the Campbell's Survey, a 7-y follow-up of the Canada Fitness Survey. Indicators of adiposity included body mass index (BMI), sum of 5 skinfold thicknesses (SF5), and waist circumference (Waist), whereas indicators of ATD included the ratio of trunk to extremity skinfold thicknesses adjusted for SF5 (TERadj), and Waist adjusted for BMI (Waistadj). Results Interage correlations ranged from 0.53 to 0.91 for BMI, from −0.09 to 0.72 for SF5, from 0.24 to 0.89 for Waist, from 0.23 to 0.73 for TERadj, and from 0.18 to 0.77 for Waistadj. Correlations for BMI were higher than for SF5, suggesting that fat-free mass may contribute to the stability of BMI. Although lower than those for BMI, correlations for indicators of ATD were significant, indicating a propensity to retain an android or gynoid pattern. Furthermore, the average percentage of participants remaining in the lower or upper quintiles for the various indicators ranged from 37.8% to 66.7% in males and from 47.0% to 65.3% in females, indicating that those in the lower and upper portions of the distribution tend to remain there. Conclusion Obesity and ATD showed significant stability over 7 y in the Canadian population.