A Cross-Sectional Research on the Height, Weight and Body Mass Index of Children Aged 5-6 Years in Latvia and Its Secular Changes during the Last Century

Aim: To determine the main anthropometric parameters and their changes during the 20th and early 21st centuries for children aged 5-6 and to analyze the nutritional level of the population based on percentage. Methods: 536 healthy Latvian 5 and 6 year old children were randomly selected and a cross sectional survey was carried out. To collect anthropometric data, the height and weight of each child was measured and BMI calculated. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov Goodness-of-Fit test was used to assess the distribution of data; it was concluded, that the data for both boys and girls in both analyzed age groups fits a normal distribution. Using a t-test statistical tool, the results were compared to o…