The present study aimed to (i) calculate body-weight- and BMI-for-age percentile values for children aged 0·5–12 years participating in the South-East Asian Nutrition Survey (SEANUTS); (ii) investigate whether the pooled (i.e. including all countries) SEANUTS weight- and BMI-for-age percentile values can be used for all SEANUTS countries instead of country-specific ones; and (iii) examine whether the pooled SEANUTS percentile values differ from the WHO growth references.

Body weight and length/height were measured. The LMS method was used for calculating smoothened body-weight- and BMI-for-age percentile values. The standardized site effect (SSE) values were used for identifying large differences (i.e. $\left| {{\rm SSE}} \right|$ >0·5) between the pooled SEANUTS sample and the remaining pooled SEANUTS samples after excluding one single country each time, as well as with WHO growth references.

Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Data from 14 202 eligible children.

The SSE derived from the comparisons of the percentile values between the pooled and the remaining pooled SEANUTS samples were indicative of small/acceptable (i.e. $\left| {{\rm SSE}} \right|$ ≤0·5) differences. In contrast, the comparisons of the pooled SEANUTS sample with WHO revealed large differences in certain percentiles.

The findings of the present study support the use of percentile values derived from the pooled SEANUTS sample for evaluating the weight status of children in each SEANUTS country. Nevertheless, large differences were observed in certain percentiles values when SEANUTS and WHO reference values were compared.

Health and nutritional information for many countries in the South-East Asian region is either lacking or no longer up to date. The present study aimed to calculate length/height percentile values for the South-East Asian Nutrition Survey (SEANUTS) populations aged 0·5–12 years, examine the appropriateness of pooling SEANUTS data for calculating common length/height percentile values for all SEANUTS countries and whether these values differ from the WHO growth references.

Data on length/height-for-age percentile values were collected. The LMS method was used for calculating smoothened percentile values. Standardized site effects (SSE) were used for identifying large or unacceptable differences (i.e. $\mid\! \rm SSE \!\mid$ >0·5) between the pooled SEANUTS sample (including all countries) and the remaining pooled SEANUTS samples (including three countries) after weighting sample sizes and excluding one single country each time, as well as with WHO growth references.

Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Data from 14202 eligible children were used.

From pair-wise comparisons of percentile values between the pooled SEANUTS sample and the remaining pooled SEANUTS samples, the vast majority of differences were acceptable (i.e. $\mid\! \rm SSE \!\mid$ ≤0·5). In contrast, pair-wise comparisons of percentile values between the pooled SEANUTS sample and WHO revealed large differences.

The current study calculated length/height percentile values for South East Asian children aged 0·5–12 years and supported the appropriateness of using pooled SEANUTS length/height percentile values for assessing children’s growth instead of country-specific ones. Pooled SEANUTS percentile values were found to differ from the WHO growth references and therefore this should be kept in mind when using WHO growth curves to assess length/height in these populations.

There are no percentile curves for BMI, waist circumference (WC) or waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) available for Portuguese children and adolescents. The purpose of the present study was to develop age- and sex-specific BMI, WC and WHtR percentile curves for a representative sample of adolescents living in the Portuguese islands of Azores, one of the poorest regions of Europe, and to compare them with those from other countries.

Cross-sectional school-based study. Weight, height and WC were objectively measured according to standard procedures. Smoothed percentile curves were estimated using Cole's LMS method.

Azores, Portugal.

Proportionate stratified random sample of 1500 adolescents, aged 15–18 years.

Results showed some sex differences in the shape of the BMI curves: in girls, the upper percentile values tend to decrease by the age of 16 and 17 years; whereas in boys, the upper percentiles tend to be flat between 15 and 16 years and then increase until the age of 18 years. In both sexes, the upper percentile values of both WC and WHtR decreased slightly by the age of 16 years and then increased steeply. In both sexes, the Azorean values for the 50th and 90th WC percentiles were higher than those reported for adolescents from the majority of other countries.

The reference curves presented herein provide baseline data for the long-term surveillance of Azorean adolescents, as well as for national and international comparisons.

It is just as vital to have an exact overview of the physical fitness of young and growing people as it is for adults. The currently used exercise protocols have limitations in healthy small children, and in senior citizens. In particular with chronically ill patients, regardless of their age, there is a need for an exercise protocol that permits observations over the long term. With this need in mind, we have designed a new transferable standardised exercise protocol, constructing reference values based on improved assessments on a treadmill that permitted stepwise increases of speed and gradient every 90 seconds – the so called treadmill protocol from the German Society of Paediatric Cardiology.

We investigated the exercise performance in a healthy Caucasian population ranging in age from 4 to 75 years.

We measured, using a prospective study design, the distance run, the endurance, and the consumption of oxygen in 548 females and 647 males undergoing an enhanced spiroergometric treadmill protocol in two centres.

Until puberty, boys and girls have the same indicators of exercise performance. Subsequent to puberty, uptake of oxygen and distance run differ, with males showing higher uptake of oxygen. There is still an age-dependent dynamic of peak uptake of oxygen related to body surface area. Using these new reference values, covering the whole range of age, it proves possible to compare performance during growth and aging of the individual. In this fashion, we have calculated centiles for all recorded variables. External calibration, validation and quality control ensures transferability of our data to other spiroergometry units.