The Relationship between Growth in Infancy and Growth in Adolescence: Report of a Longitudinal Study among Urban Black Adolescents

Document Type

Article

Authors

Robert W. Mack, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Francis E. Johnston, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Abstract

Height, weight, and skinfold thicknesses of a cohort of 473 Negro adoles­cent boys and girls, age 9-14 years, have been studied in relation to the children’s growth in infancy. The children selected were drawn from the Philadelphia section of the National Perinatal Collaborative study on the basis of high or low height-adjusted weight at 12 months of age. When analyzed for their predictive value for adolescent relative weight, the variables found to be significant were maternal pre-gravid relative weight and 12 month height-adjusted weight. Birth weight and growth in length through one year were not significant determinants. Divided at the median by current triceps skinfold thickness, the children were likewise found to have significant differences in maternal relative weight and one year height-adjusted weight. In addition, birth weights of the fatter children were significantly greater than those of the more slender children.

Recommended Citation

Mack, Robert W. and Johnston, Francis E. (1976) "The Relationship between Growth in Infancy and Growth in Adolescence: Report of a Longitudinal Study among Urban Black Adolescents," Human Biology: Vol. 48: Iss. 4, Article 4.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/humbiol/vol48/iss4/4