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Document Type

Article

Abstract

The degree of continuity from childhood to adulthood in body fatness is evaluated using the results of longitudinal principal components analysis of W/S2 during childhood (3 months-18 years) in relation to several adult measures of body fatness (W/S2 at 30 years, total body fat, per cent body fat, fat cell number, fat cell size, and weight change from 18 to 30 years). Sixty per cent or less of the variance in any of the adult outcomes is explained by trends in W/S2 during childhood represented by the components. The largest amounts of variance are explained for W/S2 at 30 years, total body fat and per cent body fat. Ten to fifteen per cent of the variance in fat cell number is explained by the components. Weight change between from 18-30 years and fat cell size are not significantly associated with trends in W/S2 during childhood. These results suggest that a significant proportion of the variance in adulthood body fatness is determined by influences beginning after maturity is reached.

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