Table 1.
Physiological, lifestyle and sociodemographic characteristics of South Asian children stratified by sex
| Total (n=762) | Boys (n=360) | Girls (n=402) | P value | |
| Age (years) | 9.5±3.0 | 9.3±2.8 | 9.7±3.1 | 0.09 |
| Paternal education | 0.92 | |||
| No formal education | 5 (1%) | 3 (1%) | 2 (1%) | |
| Primary education | 247 (34%) | 115 (34%) | 132 (35%) | |
| Trade school | 21 (3%) | 9 (3%) | 12 (3%) | |
| College/university | 444 (62%) | 209 (62%) | 235 (62%) | |
| Maternal education | 0.363 | |||
| No formal education | 5 (1%) | 4 (1%) | 1 (0%) | |
| Primary education | 223 (30%) | 103 (30%) | 120 (31%) | |
| Trade school | 6 (1%) | 4 (1%) | 2 (1%) | |
| College/university | 503 (68%) | 235 (68%) | 268 (69%) | |
| Acculturation score (western) | 34.8±4.7 | 34.6±4.62 | 34.9±4.74 | 0.426 |
| Acculturation score (traditional) | 26.7±4.43 | 26.3±4.35 | 27.1±4.48 | 0.02 |
| Daily physical activity in school (MET min/day) | 35.7±25.8 | 36.8±27.0 | 34.8±24.7 | 0.288 |
| Daily physical activity outside school (MET min/day) | 15.9±33.9 | 18.5±31.3 | 13.5±35.9 | 0.04 |
| Daily intake—servings of fruit and vegetables (daily mean intake) | 3.16±1.86 | 3.11±1.81 | 3.21±1.91 | 0.485 |
| Daily intake—servings of fast foods (daily mean intake) | 0.91±0.78 | 0.86±0.59 | 0.97±0.91 | 0.067 |
| Total daily intake—servings | 12.0±4.48 | 12.2±4.9 | 11.8±4.1 | 0.243 |
| Exposure to bullying/violence at school | 0.025 | |||
| Yes | 233 (34%) | 126 (38%) | 107 (30%) | |
| No | 459 (66%) | 207 (62%) | 252 (70%) | |
| Exposure to secondhand smoking* | 0.616 | |||
| None | 712 (94%) | 336 (94%) | 376 (94%) | |
| 1–2 times/week | 33 (4%) | 16 (5%) | 17 (4%) | |
| 3–6 times/week | 5 (1%) | 2 (1%) | 3 (1%) | |
| At least once a day | 7 (1%) | 5 (1%) | 2 (1%) | |
| 2–3 times/day | 1 (0%) | 0 (0%) | 1 (0%) | |
| Mother’s history of hypertension | 0.047 | |||
| Yes | 12 (4%) | 9 (7%) | 3 (2%) | |
| No | 280 (96%) | 128 (93%) | 152 (98%) | |
| Father’s history of hypertension | 0.979 | |||
| Yes | 30 (10%) | 14 (10%) | 16 (10%) | |
| No | 260 (90%) | 122 (90%) | 138 (90%) | |
| Height (cm) | 138.3±16.5 | 139.1±17.6 | 137.7±15.5 | 0.22 |
| Weight (kg) | 36.5±15.8 | 36.9±16.5 | 36.1±15.3 | 0.46 |
| BMI z-score | 0.48±1.44 | 0.57±1.61 | 0.40±1.28 | 0.11 |
| WC z-score | −0.06±1.23 | 0.11±0.36 | −0.21±1.24 | <0.001 |
| WHtR z-score | −0.38±1.24 | −0.27±1.27 | −0.48±1.21 | 0.02 |
| Heart rate | 87±12 | 86±12 | 87±13 | 0.047 |
| SBP z-score | 0.57±0.97 | 0.70±0.99 | 0.46±0.95 | 0.001 |
| DBP z-score | 0.37±0.71 | 0.35±0.68 | 0.39±0.73 | 0.41 |
| SBP (non-transformed) | 109±11 | 111±12 | 107±10 | <0.001 |
| DBP (non-transformed) | 65±8 | 65±8 | 65±8 | 0.849 |
| Systolic hypertension | 90 (12%) | 54 (15%) | 36 (9%) | 0.01 |
| Diastolic hypertension | 31 (4%) | 13 (4%) | 18 (5%) | 0.55 |
*Exposure defined as a minimum of five consecutive minutes during which inhalation of other people’s smoke occurs.
BMI, body mass index; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; MET, metabolic-equivalent-of-task; SBP, systolic blood pressure; WC, waist circumference; WHtR, waist-to-height ratio.