Associations between dietary intakes of magnesium and calcium and overweight and obesity in US children from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003-2012

Magnesium and calcium are important micronutrients for normal growth and development, and they may play a role in the development of obesity. Previous studies showed abnormalities of serum magnesium and calcium levels were detected among obese children. We examine the associations between intakes of magnesium and calcium from food and overweight/obesity among children in a population-based cross-sectional study. A total number of 5,813 children aged 8 to 14 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003 to 2012 were included in our analyses. Dietary intakes of calcium and magnesium were determined from 24-h dietary recalls. NHANES anthropometric measurements were used, and body mass index (BMI) and BMI-for-age percentiles were calculated for boys and girls. Based on the International Child BMI-cut-offs, overweight was defined as BMI≥85% to BMI