Effect of physical training on body composition in Moscow adolescents.

The influence of physical activity on body mass components has been studied using a sample of Moscow children. 195 girls and 259 boys of Russian ethnicity from 12 to 17 years old were investigated cross-sectionally in 2005 in different Moscow schools. According to the level of physical activity they were divided into three groups: 1-those who did not take part in regular physical exercise (44 boys and 50 girls); 2-those who took part in special sports programs in general education schools (82 boys and 82 girls); 3-students of special sports schools with a high sports ranking (133 boys and 63 girls).

Secular trends of sizes at birth in Russian infants born between 1987 and 2002.

Secular changes in the body dimensions of newborns from three different geographical localities are compared. Anthropometrical data of infants born in 1987 and in 2002 as a result of singleton full-term non-pathological postpartum were collected from medical records of children's out-patient clinics in three geographical localities: two big cities-Moscow and Saratov-and the town of Khvalynsk (Saratov region). The total number of newborns used in the analysis was 1,174.