Stability of Adiposity Phenotypes from Childhood and Adolescence into Young Adulthood with Contribution of Parental Measures

Objective: The stability of several indicators of body composition and adipose tissue distribution over 12 years was quantified. Research Methods and Procedures: The participants were 77 boys and 76 girls who were evaluated along with their parents at baseline as children and adolescents (8 to 18 years of age) and remeasured as young adults 12 years later. Indicators of body composition included the body mass index, fat mass, fat free mass, percentage of body fat, sum of six skinfolds (SF6), and the first principal component of six age‐adjusted skinfold residuals. Relative adipose tissue distribution was represented by the second principal component of skinfold residuals and a trunk‐to‐extremity skinfold ratio, adjusted for SF6. Results: Partial interage correlations, controlling for initial age and length of follow‐up, were 0.65 and 0.59 for the body mass index, 0.59 and 0.64 for fat mass, 0.65 and 0.57 for fat free mass, 0.50 and 0.57 for percentage of body fat, 0.66 and 0.44 for SF6, 0.64 and 0.42 for the first principal component of six age‐adjusted skinfold residuals, 0.19 and 0.31 for the second principal component of skinfold residuals, and 0.41 and 0.47 for trunk‐to‐extremity skinfold ratio, adjusted for SF6, in men and women, respectively. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the significant partial R 2 values of parental measurements on the prediction of their offspring in young adulthood ranged from 2% to 9%. Discussion: The results indicate moderately high stability of indicators of body composition and somewhat lower stability of measures of adipose tissue distribution. Overall, parental measures offer less predictive value than do measures of childhood and adolescent body composition and adipose tissue distribution.