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Height and Weight: Standard Measures to Accomplish an Important Goal. Head to Toe Conference April 18, 2012 Rita Condon Health Educator. Today’s Focus. Weight status of New Mexico’s children Overview of standard protocol for height/weight measurement
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Height and Weight:Standard Measures to Accomplish an Important Goal Head to Toe Conference April 18, 2012 Rita Condon Health Educator
Today’s Focus Weight status of New Mexico’s children Overview of standard protocol for height/weight measurement Overview of CDC Percentile Analysis Tool For Children Hands on practice taking measurements and quality control Calculating and analyzing results using CDC Tool
What Is BMI? What is BMI? Adult BMI Measurement Child BMI Measurement
Height/Weight Measurement Protocol • UNM PRC developed protocol and training • Standard data collection form • Essential data • Birth date • Gender • Measurement date • Height & weight • Grade • Race/ethnicity
Height/Weight Measurement Protocol • Calculations only work if measurements are accurate • A small difference in measurement can make a big difference in categorization • ~ ¼ inch differentiates healthy weight from overweight
Height/Weight Measurement Protocol Correct positioning Breathe in and hold Frankfort horizontal plane This is a straight line from the lowest part of the eye orbit to the top of the ear canal. This should be parallel to the ground when measuring height.
Height/Weight Measurement Protocol Height and weight measured twice Quality control checks to ensure accuracy Measurements taken using standardized equipment
Data Analysis and Management • CDC Children’s BMI Tool for Schools • Provides group summary of children's BMI-for-age categories • Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity graphs • Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity by Sex graphs
Value of Elementary School BMI Surveillance Knowledge is power Assess the problem Identify at-risk populations Focus resources Increase awareness Inform policy makers Monitor trends over time Evaluate obesity prevention efforts
Using What We’ve Learned Increase in prevalence of obesity Standardize procedures for measuring height/weight and analyzing results Training is critical Measurement error matters Calculate BMI for a group of children using CDC tool - http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/childrens_BMI/tool_for_schools.html /