Korean kids, teens grow taller, stouter faster, gov't survey finds

Elementary school students in Gangwon take a test on July 5, 2023 to examine their academic levels. [YONHAP]

Korean children and teenagers have grown taller and matured faster in the last decade, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) under the Trade Ministry released a report on the body measurements of Korean children and adolescents on Thursday during a presentation at Lotte World Tower in southern Seoul, marking the upcoming Children’s Day on May 5.

The eighth iteration of the survey examined 1,118 children and adolescents between the ages of seven and 19 from March to December last year. Among the subjects, 571 were boys and 547 were girls.

A 3D scanner measured 314 items, including height, weight, leg, arm, and waist length, according to KATS.

The new measurements showed that the average height of both boys and girls increased compared to the sixth survey, conducted from 2011 to 2013.

By age, average height increased by 1.7 inches (4.3 centimeters) for boys and by 1.1 inches for girls from seven to 11.

Teenagers from 12 to 14 grew by 2.9 inches for boys and 1.3 inches for girls.

For adolescents between 15 and 17, boys grew 0.9 inches taller and girls 0.7 inches.

The growth spurt period came earlier than the sixth survey, with boys' development peaking between the ages of 14 and 15 and girls peaking between 13 and 14.

In the sixth survey, development peaked between 16 and 17 for boys and 15 and 16 for girls.

In other words, peak development now comes two years earlier compared to 10 years ago.

The average weight also increased within a decade.

The average weight for boys between the ages of seven and 11 increased by 6.6 pounds (3 kilograms), while girls' weight increased by 2.4 pounds.

For adolescents from 12 to 14, the average weight for boys rose by 11.2 pounds and girls by 2.9 pounds.

For those between the ages of 15 and 17, the average weight increased by 9.7 pounds for boys and 6.1 pounds for girls.

According to the report, the length of the lower half of the body decreased based on the waist-high ratio among children and adolescents.

The waist-high ratio is a figure that divides one’s waist height by one’s total height.

In other words, the waist position among young children got lower.

The average waist-high ratio decreased by 3.1 percent for boys between the ages of 12 and 14 and 2.5 percent for girls in the same age range compared to 10 years ago.

The length from the floor and one’s crotch ratio also decreased by 0.5 percent for boys and 0.9 percent for girls from 12 to 14 years old.

The KATS said that the result shows that the upper body ratio has increased as the waist became longer, compared to the past.

The body mass index (BMI), which measures one’s obesity level, increased for both boys and girls compared to the 6th survey.

The BMI increased to 21.4 from 20.7 for boys and 20.0 from 19.8 for girls.

Though the overall average weights for boys and girls were within the normal weight range, respectively, an average of 23.6 percent of boys between the ages of 18 and 19 were defined to be overweight, mildly obese, or moderately obese.

Overweight is defined when the index ranges between 23 and 24.9. Mild obesity ranges from 25 to 29.9, and moderate obesity begins when the index is over 30.

Boys had a higher obesity rate than girls, with 20.7 percent of boys being overweight or obese compared to 14.3 percent of girls.

During its presentation, the KATS also shared cases of using 3D technology to determine people's body types.

“We will work hard on integrating human body data with advanced technology to be used in new industrial businesses, such as health care service, digital identification and security, in the future,” said Jin Jong-wook, the president of KATS.

BY LEE JI-YOUNG [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]