TY  - JOUR
T1  - Anthropometrically Determined Subcutaneous Fat Distribution among
Urban South African Children: A Principal Components Analysis
AU - Goon, Daniel Ter AU - Shaw, Brandon AU - Toriola, Abel Lamina 
JO  - Research Journal of Medical Sciences
VL  - 11
IS  - 4
SP  - 174
EP  - 180
PY  - 2017
DA  - 2001/08/19
SN  - 1815-9346
DO  - rjmsci.2017.174.180
UR  - https://makhillpublications.co/view-article.php?doi=rjmsci.2017.174.180
KW  - principal components analysis
KW  -ethnic variation
KW  -Subcutaneous fat distribution
KW  -children
KW  -South African
KW  -centralized
AB  - Body fat distribution is deleterious to health. This study evaluates subcutaneous fat distribution
among South African children, by utilising Principal Components Analysis (PCA). This cross-sectional study
involved 1136 participants (548 boys and 588 girls) and 581 black and 555 white children from 12 public schools
in Central Pretoria, South Africa. Stature, body mass and eight skinfolds: triceps, subscapular, biceps,
supraspinale, abdomen, front thigh, iliac crest and medial calf were measured. PCA technique was applied to
examine the components loadings. An eigen value of >1.0 was retained for analysis. Boys and girls showed
positive loadings in all the skinfolds thickness, implying a fatness or size factor component with a total variance
of 48.3 and 54.4% for boys and girls, respectively. Similarly, black and white children’s skinfolds thickness
loaded positively on the first component indicating a fatness or size factor component and explaining 52.8 and
48.9% in black and white children, respectively. The trunk-extremity and upper-lower body extremity fat
patterning components are discernible among the children. There were variations in indices of fat patterning
studied across gender and race. Girls possessed higher adiposity in their subscapular and triceps areas whereas
boys showed propensity to centralized fat pattern. Also, this study demonstrates dissimilar pattern in the
trunk-extremity and upper-lower trunk components in both the black and white South African children. There
is need to control central fat patterning in the children.
ER  -