Anthropometric Conditions of Female University Students Registered in Education Year 2011
Mansour Sayyah1*, Manzardokht Bigdel2, Tahereh Mazochi3 and Hossein Nikzad4

¹Affiliated Faculty Member of Anatomical Sciences Research Center, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, I. R. Iran.

²Manzardokht Bigdeli, M. S. Exercise Sciences.

³Tahereh Mazochi, Ph.D, Affiliated Faculty Member of Anatomical Sciences Research Center, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, I.R. Iran.

4Affiliated faculty member of Anatomical Sciences Research Center, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, I. R. Iran.

Abstract: Assessing anthropometric measure of university student is the subject of many studies. The most common measures used in these types of study are weight, height, waist and hip circumference. The purpose of this study was to examine these anthropometric measures prior to the start of university education. The anthropometric of all the female university students admitted for the first time to the university aged between 18 to 21 years were measured. Seca scale and inflexible measuring tape was employed to weight (kg), height, waist and hip (cm) circumference. Waist to hip ratio (w/h) and body mass index (bmi) was calculated. All the data were analyzed by SPSS:pc software. A total of 265 female students participated in this study. Overall, 46 percent of the subjects were in normal weight ( bmi, 18.5 to 25). One-way analysis of variance indicated that there was a significant difference between the bmi of the different age groups ( p=0.03). No such significance was present for the w/h ratio (p>0.05). The association between the bmi and w/h ratio was also significant (p=0.0001). The body composition of female students admitted to university changes as the age increases. This increase occurs as their age increase even before they enter to the university and can lead to the accumulation of fat throughout the body and thus may create health risk factors. The confirmed weight gain during the first year of studying in college can put more students in the over weight and even fat category.

Keywords: Anthropometry; bmi; w/h ratio; female students

[ HTML Full Text]

Back to TOC