Changes in Body Build of AWF Students 1967-2008. Can a Secular Trend be Observed?

• Authors: Aleksandra Stachoń , Anna Burdukiewicz , Jadwiga Pietraszewska , Justyna Andrzejewska
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Purpose. Previous research on intergenerational changes in body build has focused on body height and mass. The aim of this study was to determine both the direction and sexual dimorphism of secular changes in body build by using a sample population of students attending the University School of Physical Education (AWF) in Wrocław, Poland. Methods. The anthropometric data used in this study were collected every year from 1967 to 2008 and included a sample size of 4688 males and 3922 females. The subjects were analyzed for changes in somatotype by use of Sheldon's method, as modified by Heath and Carter. Basic statistical analysis for significance and post-hoc tests were used to analyze the data with Statistica 9.0 software. The data were then converted in Excel 2003 into chart form to analyze the direction of changes. Results. Analysis of the successive classes of male and female subjects during the 40-year period under study revealed a number of different directional changes in the mean values of body height, mass and the level of body build components. Trend lines, calculated by the mean values of five-year intervals, indicated an increasing tendency in both body height and mass in the two genders. Mesomorphy was found to be the largest factor of body build composition of females and males. Throughout the entire analyzed period, the endomorphy of males was significantly lower in comparison to females. In women, the level of fatness was similar to their level of musculature, but during the last several years the observed level of muscle in the students exceeded their fatness level. Ectomorphy happened to be the most stable component of both sexes. Conclusions. Analysis on the male and female sample population revealed a constant increase in body mass and height in successive generations. In female subjects, intergenerational changes were found to be characterized by a decrease in endomorphy and an increase in ectomorphy, while the level of mesomorphy remained at a similar level. In men, a secular trend was visible with an increase in mesomorphy, while the levels of endomorphy and ectomorphy stayed constant.

Keywords

EN

somatotype; body components; body composition; body height and weight; secular trend; sexual dimorphism

• Publisher: De Gruyter Open
• Journal: Human Movement
• Year: 2012
• Volume: 13
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 109-119

Dates

published

1 - 6 - 2012

online

28 - 6 - 2012

Contributors

author

Aleksandra Stachoń

• University School of Physical Education, Wrocław, Poland

author

Anna Burdukiewicz

• University School of Physical Education, Wrocław, Poland

author

Jadwiga Pietraszewska

• University School of Physical Education, Wrocław, Poland

author

Justyna Andrzejewska

• University School of Physical Education, Wrocław, Poland

References

• Wolański N., Secular trends in Homo sapiens, its elements and causes [in Polish]. Kosmos, 1967, 16 (4), 381-401.
• Milicer H., Skibińska A., Skład M., Secular trend in body size and proportions of academic youth [in Polish]. Wych Fiz Sport, 1974, XVIII(4), 63-73.
• Piechaczek H., Lewandowska J., Orlicz B., Changes in body build of academic youth in period of 35 years [in Polish]. Wych Fiz Sport, 1996, 3, 3-14.
• Ziółkowska-Łajp E., Study in tendency of changes of morphological features - conditionings and effects in the light of long-term research [in Polish]. Monografie Akademii Wychowania Fizycznego w Poznaniu, 1999, 336.
• Roche A. F., Secular trends in human growth, maturation, and development. Monogr Soc Res Child Dev, 1979, 44 (3-4), 1-120. http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/1165883?uid=3738840&uid=2134&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&sid=56057010043
• Tanner J. M., Growth as a mirror of the condition of society: secular trends and class distinctions. Acta Paediatrica Japonica, 1987, 29, 96-103, doi: 10.1111/j.1442-200X.1987.tb00015.x[Crossref]
• Malina R. M., Research on secular trends in auxology. Anthropol Anz, 1990, 48 (3), 209-227, doi: 0003-5548/90/0048-0209.[PubMed]
• Hauspie R. C., Vercauteren M., Susanne C., Secular changes in growth and maturation: an update. Acta Paediatr Suppl, 1997, 423, 20-27.
• Cole T. J., Secular trends in growth. Proc Nutr Soc, 2000, 59 (2), 317-324, doi: 10.1017/S0029665100000355.[PubMed][Crossref]
• Tanner J. M., Growth as a measure of the nutritional and hygienic status of a population. Horm Res, 1992, 38 (suppl. 1), 106-115, doi: 10.1159/000182580.[PubMed][Crossref]
• Kuh D. L., Power C., Rodgers B., Secular trends in social class and sex differences in adult height. Int J Epidemiol, 1991, 20 (4), 1001-1009, doi: 10.1093/ije/20.4.1001.[PubMed][Crossref]
• Meyer H. E., Selmer R., Income, educational level and body height. Ann Hum Biol, 1999, 26 (3), 219-227, doi: 10.1080/030144699282723.[PubMed][Crossref]
• Chinn S., Rona R. J., Price C. E., The secular trend in height of primary school children in England and Scot-land 1972-79 and 1979-86. Ann Hum Biol, 1989, 16 (5), 387-395, doi: 10.1080/03014468900000512.[Crossref]
• Weber G., Seidler H., Wilfing H., Hauser G., Secular change in height in Austria: an effect of population stratification? Ann Hum Biol, 1995, 22, 277-288, doi: 10.1080/03014469500003952.[Crossref]
• Padez C., Johnston F., Secular trends in male adult height 1904-1996 in relation to place of residence and parent's educational level in Portugal. Ann Hum Biol, 1999, 26 (3), 287-298, doi: 10.1080/030144699282787.[Crossref]
• Proos L. A., Anthropometry in adolescence-secular trends, adoption, ethnic and environmental differences. Horm Res, 1993, 39 (suppl. 3), 18-24, doi: 10.1159/000182781.[Crossref][PubMed]
• Loesch D. Z., Stokes K., Huggins R. M., Secular trend in body height and weight of Australian children and adolescents. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2000, 111 (4), 545-556, doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1096-8644(200004)111:4<545::AID-AJPA9> 3.0.CO;2-X.[Crossref][PubMed]
• Fredriks A. M., van Buuren S., Burgmeijer R. J., Meulmeester J. F., Beuker R. J., Brugman E. et al., Continuing positive secular growth change in The Netherlands 1955-1997. Pediatr Res, 2000, 47 (3), 316-323.
• Carter J. E. L., Heath B. H., Somatotyping - development and applications. Cambridge Studies in Biological Anthropology, 1990, 5.
• Bielicki T., Szklarska A., Secular trends in stature in Poland: national and social class-specific. Ann Hum Biol, 1999, 26 (3), 251-258, doi: 10.1080/030144699282750.[Crossref][PubMed]
• Gerver W. J., De Bruin R., Drayer N. M., A persisting secular trend for body measurements in Dutch children. The Oosterwolde II Study. Acta Paediatr, 1994, 83 (8), 812-814, doi: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.1994.tb13150.x.[PubMed][Crossref]
• Schmidt I. M., Jørgensen M. H., Michaelsen K. F., Height of conscripts in Europe: is postneonatal mortality a predictor? Ann Hum Biol, 1995, 22 (1), 57-67, doi: 10.1080/03014469500003702.[Crossref][PubMed]
• Fredriks A. M., van Buuren S., Jeurissen S. E., Dekker F. W., Verloove-Vanhorick S. P., Wit J. M., Height, weight, body mass index and pubertal development reference values for children of Turkish origin in the Netherlands. Eur J Pediatr, 2003, 162 (11), 788-793, doi: 10.1007/s00431-003-1292-x.[Crossref]
• Roelants M., Hauspie R., Hoppenbrouwers K., References for growth and pubertal development from birth to 21 years in Flanders, Belgium. Ann Hum Biol, 2009, 36 (6), 680-94, doi: 10.3109/03014460903049074.[WoS][Crossref][PubMed]
• Tanner J. M., Hayashi T., Preece M. A., Cameron N., Increase in length of leg relative to trunk in Japanese children and adults from 1957 to 1977: comparison with British and with Japanese Americans. Ann Hum Biol, 1982, 9 (5), 411-423.
• Eveleth P. B., Tanner J. M., Worldwide Variation in Human Growth. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1990.
• Cole T. J., The secular trend in human physical growth: a biological view. Econ Hum Biol, 2003, 1 (2), 161-168, doi: 10.1016/S1570-677X(02)00033-3.[PubMed][Crossref]
• Grabowska J., Social conditioning of body height and mass in children and adolescents, as well as in adult inhabitants of the Konin Province, Poland. Anthropol Anz, 2001, 59 (2), 123-147, doi: 0004-5548/01/0059-0123.[PubMed]
• Nowak-Starz G., Level of development of selected somatic features of children at the age of 6 from the Swietokrzyskie region depending on their biological state in their infancy [in Polish]. Wiad Lek, 2002, 55 (1), 364-369.
• Ong K. K., Size at birth, postnatal growth and risk of obesity. Horm Res, 2006, 65 (suppl. 3), 65-69, doi: 10.1159/000091508.[Crossref][PubMed]
• Kuczmarski R. J., Need for body composition information in elderly subjects. Am J Clin Nutr, 1989, 50 (suppl. 5), 1150-1157.[PubMed]

Identifiers

DOI

10.2478/v10038-012-0011-8