CHILDREN SOMATOTYPE STUDY OF DIFFERENT ETHNIC GROUPS FROM PLOVDIV REGION, BULGARIA

• Main Authors: Atanas Baltadjiev (Author), Elena Merdzhanova (Author), Nikolay Boyadjiev (Author), Penka Angelova (Author), Ralitza Raycheva (Author), Valentina Lalova (Author), Gergana Petrova (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Peytchinski Publishing, 2024-02-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 10.5272/jimab.2024301.5381; 1312-773X
• Keywords: anthropology; somatotype; children; ethnic groups; Dentistry; RK1-715; Medicine (General); R5-920
• Source: Journal of IMAB, Vol 30, Iss 1, Pp 5381-5386 (2024)

The purpose of the present study was to determine and compare the children's somatotypes of three ethnic groups living in the Plovdiv region, Bulgaria. Material and Methods: A cohort of 194 children were enrolled in the study. They were divided into four groups by sex and age. Each group were divided by ethnicity into three subgroups: Bulgarian, Turkish and Roma origins. The regression equations introduced by Heath and Carter were used to determine the somatotype components. Results: The somatotype of Bulgarian and Roma boys aged 11-12 years was defined as mesomorph-endomorph, while the somatotype of Turkish boys was determined as central. The somatotype of boys aged 13-14 years was defined as follows: Bulgarian boys- balanced endomorph, Turkish boys- endomorph-ectomorph and Roma boys with central somatotype. The mean somatotype of Bulgarian girls aged 11-12 years was defined as ectomorphic an endomorph, while the somatotype of both Turkish and Roma girls was defined a mesomorphic endomorph. Similar results were found analyzing the mean somatotype of girls aged 13-14 years. Conclusion: The period of puberty has a very important impact on the development of the human body. The mean somatotype of Bulgarian boys aged 11-12 years has changed from mesomorph-endomorph to balanced endomorph. The mean somatotype of Turkish boys aged 11-12 has changed from central to endomorph-ectomorph. The mean somatotype of Roma boys aged 11-12 has changed from mesomorph-endomorph to central. The mean somatotype of Bulgarian girls was ectomorphic endomorphic; for Turkish and Roma girls it was mesomorphic endomorphic for both age group.