Body mass index variations among adolescents from Kano Metropolis, Nigeria

Abstract

Bodyweight and height measurements were carried out on 2, 100 healthy teenagers (1050 males and 1050 females) randomly selected in Kano metropolis. These measurements were used to calculate Body Mass Index (BMI) according to the formula weight (kg)/height2 (m). Mean BMI values increased with age in the subjects irrespective of sex. However, female subjects had higher mean BMI values than their male counterparts in all the age groups. Mean BMI values ranged from 17.0 to 20.9 in males and from 18.0 to 24.0 in females. These BMI ranges of values were used as the basis for classification of the subjects as underweight, normal and overweight.

Key words: adolescence, body mass index, anthropometric assessment, nutritional status