Growing up in Australia: paradox of overweight/obesity in children of immigrants from low‐and‐middle ‐income countries

OBJECTIVE: Children of immigrants from low‐and‐middle‐income countries show excess overweight/obesity risk relative to host populations, possibly due to socioeconomic disadvantage. The present study was conducted to estimate overweight/obesity prevalence and its association with the family socioeconomic‐position in 2–11‐year‐old Australian‐born children of immigrants and Australian‐mothers. METHODS: A cross‐sectional analysis of 10‐year data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children was undertaken. Overweight/obesity was defined according to the International Obesity Taskforce, age‐and sex‐specific BMI cut‐off‐points. RESULTS: Approximately 24% children aged 2–3 years (22% sons, and 25% daughters), were overweight/obese with no significant difference between children of immigrants and Australian‐mothers. Overweight/obesity prevalence consistently increased with age for sons of mothers from low‐and‐middle‐income countries but not daughters. Adjusting for the family socioeconomic‐position did not explain excess overweight/obesity in children of mothers from low‐and‐middle‐income countries. The odds of overweight/obesity in sons were significantly higher at 8–9 years (OR 1.5; p = 0.03) and 10–11 years (OR 1.5; p = 0.03) and in daughters at 4–5 years (OR 1.7; p = 0.002) when the mothers were from low‐and‐middle‐income countries. CONCLUSION: Excess weight in children of immigrants is not due to socioeconomic disadvantage alone. Other social processes and interactions between immigrants and host cultures may be involved.