Table 1 Definitions of overweight and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents

World Health Organization

Children and adolescents aged 5–19 years (WHO 2007 Growth Reference [65])

BMI-for-age

Overweight: BMI >1 standard deviation (SD) above WHO growth standard median (equivalent to BMI 25 kg/m² at 19 years)

Obesity: BMI >2 SDs above WHO growth standard median (equivalent to BMI 30 kg/m² at 19 years)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Children and adolescents aged 2–20 years (CDC 2000 Growth Charts [66])

Sex- and age-specific BMI percentiles

Overweight: BMI ≥ 85th to 94th percentile

Obesity: BMI ≥95th percentile

International Obesity Task Force (IOTF)

Children and adolescents aged 2–18 years (IOTF 2000 Reference [67])

International sex- and age-specific BMI cut-off points, linked to the adult BMI cut-off points 25 kg/m² (overweight) and 30 kg/m² (obesity)