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The objective of this study was to evaluate secular changes in the Body Mass Index (BMI) and weight status of rural children and adolescents in west-central Poland across decennial surveys spanning 1986 and 2016. Participants were 8,677 boys and girls 7-15 years attending schools in 10 rural communities in 1986, 1996, 2006, and 2016. Heights and weights were measured; BMIs were calculated. Weight status was classified using International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) criteria. The sample was partitioned into three age groups (7-9, 10-12, 13-15 years) for analysis of secular change in the BMI using sex-specific analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with age and age 2 as covariates, and for comparison of the prevalence of mild, moderate and severe thinness and of overweight and obesity. BMIs increased, on average, across the four surveys, but differences between adjacent surveys varied. Prevalence of severe and moderate thinness was low in both sexes, while mild thinness tended to decline over time, more so among girls. Overweight and obesity increased over time, especially in 2006 and 2016 compared to 1986 and 1996. In conclusion, secular changes in the BMI between 1986 and 2016 were significant. Age-adjusted mean BMIs suggested a gradient, 2016 > 2006 > 1996 > 1986, except in girls 13-15 years. However, changes across the decennial surveys varied. The observed changes in overweight and obesity between 1986 and 2016 were consistent with studies in Poland spanning the past two generations.

Studies of age at menarche in Poland have a long history and consistently show an urban-rural gradient. The objectives of the study were to to estimate the age at menarche among school girls resident in ten rural communities of the Greater Poland province in 2016 and to compare ages at menarche by weight status and by population growth. The sample included 1146 girls, 7–16 years of age, resident in ten rural communities. Menarcheal status was obtained via interview. Heights and weights were measured; the BMI was calculated. Based on the latter, the girls were classified as thin, normal weight and overweight (including the obese) relative to IOTF criteria. Population growth between 1986 and 2016 in each community was estimated from local records. Ages at menarche were estimated with the probit regression protocol (SPSS) using the logistic model with log 10 transformation for the total sample and for the subsamples by weight status and population growth. The median age at menarche for the total sample of rural girls was 13.25±0.20 years. Menarche was earlier among Overweight (13.06±0.32 years) compared to Normal Weight (13.25±0.37 years) and Thin (13.81±0.41 years), and among girls resident in communities with Major population growth (12.58±0.44 years) compared to Little/No growth (13.65±0.14 years). Results of the present survey were generally consistent with recent surveys of age at menarche among rural girls in Poland and among girls classified by weight status. Corresponding comparative data relating menarche to population growth are lacking.