Prevalence and socio‐demographic associations of overweight and obesity among children attending child‐care services in rural and regional Australia

Aim: To describe the prevalence and socio‐demographic characteristics associated with body mass index among children attending child‐care services in New South Wales, Australia. Methods: Cross‐sectional study of parent‐reported socio‐demographic characteristics and objectively measured height and weight among children aged two to five years attending 40 randomly selected long day care centres and preschools. Results: Seven hundred and sixty‐four children, 11% of whom were Indigenous, participated in the study (response rate = 66%). Overall, 16.7% of children and 24.6% of Indigenous children were overweight or obese. Overweight and obesity was higher among children whose mothers did not have a university education (OR 1.91: 95% CI 1.15, 3.12) and who were Indigenous (OR 1.74: 95% CI 1.05, 2.90). No differences in prevalence were found between geographic areas. Multivariate analysis indicated that after adjusting for age, child‐care service hours and other demographic covariates, only maternal education remained a significant predictor of weight status (OR 2.06: 95% CI 1.16, 3.66). Conclusion: The high prevalence of overweight and obesity among children attending child‐care services underscores the importance of obesity prevention interventions in early child‐care settings, and particularly those catering for Indigenous children.