Overweight children face a plethora of health concerns if the problem continues into adulthood. Overweight children also endure social discrimination and poor self-esteem, according to the CDC, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Several tests are available for children ages 2 to 19 that can help to determine a child's weight and how much of the weight can be attributed to unhealthy amounts of fat.
Identification
The American Heart Association explains that physicians take weight and body composition into consideration when identifying a child as overweight. Physicians use a BMI, or Body Mass Index, test to determine the amount of body fat a child has. The formula for a BMI test is weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared, or kg/m2. It also can be computed as weight in pounds divided by height in inches. Divide the result by height in inches again to determine the BMI.
Considerations
Physicians record BMI results on charts that reveal the child's body mass percentile. This means that if a child is in the 50th percentile, his body mass is equal to 50 percent of the children his age. The CDC considers children who rank at the 95th percentile on the BMI chart to be obese with high amounts of body fat. Once a child reaches the 95th percentile, the CDC recommends a skinfold test.
Function
A skinfold test can help to determine the percentage of excess fat within the body. The thickness of the folds tested gives an indication of subcutaneous adipose tissue--or fat--under the skin. In children, the testing site is usually the triceps. During the test, the section of skin behind the upper arm is gently pinched and a caliper measures the thickness of the gathered skin.
Significance
While BMI and skinfold tests can provide valuable information about the body fat of overweight children, both of these tests are also invaluable when it comes to determining which children are at risk of becoming obese and which children may be underweight. For instance, the CDC considers children with a BMI below the 5th percentile underweight. Children with a BMI that falls within the 5th and the 85th percentile have a healthy amount of body fat, but a BMI between the 85th and 95th percentile means that the child is at risk of becoming obese. The skinfold test for boys should range between 10 and 25mm. For girls, a skinfold test between 16 and 30mm represents a healthy body fat ratio.
Warnings
It is important to understand that while both body fat tests are helpful, they are only screening tests and cannot measure body fat directly. Because a child's body is always changing and growing, it is important to have a BMI test performed yearly. This way, the child's physician and parents can monitor an increase or loss in body fat. An increase in exercise and a healthy meal plan are usually set in place when BMI readings are above normal.
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