Thursday's Internet Edition, March 11, 2010.
More Than 40% Of Davie Students At Risk
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The screenings were done on 2,139 students in first, third, fifth and seventh grades, starting last October and ending last month. Students’ BMI, or Body Mass Index, was determined using a weight and height ratio.
The screenings were part of a program sponsored by the school system and the Sara Lee Center for Women’s Health at Forsyth Medical Center, and scales and a stadiometer (to measure height) were provided by the medical center.
Parents of those students who were in either the 85th percentile or below the 5th percentile will receive a letter at home with their child’s results.
The school with the highest percent of students in the 85th percentile or greater was North Davie, where 84 of the 175 students tested were found to be at risk for being overweight. South Davie had the lowest number of students at risk, where 60 students, or 33.5 percent of those tested, were in the 85th percentile or higher.
The greatest amount of students in the lower percentile, students thought to be at risk for being underweight, was at Shady Grove, where 16 of the 321 students tested were in the 5th percentile or less.
A BMI score that is too high may indicate an increased risk for development of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, sleep apnea, orthopedic complications, and certain cancers. A BMI that is too low indicates those who may be at risk for improper bone development, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, weak immune systems and future reproductive complications.
And those are only the physical possibilities.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, obese children and adolescents are targets of early ... subscribe to the Davie County Enterprise Record, P.O. Box 99, Mocksville, N.C. 27028.