The comparison of various adiposity indices in children and adolescents shows that there is a great similarity between the indices, and also between their ability to distinguish extreme groups. The adiposity indices used are highly correlated with weight and subscapular skinfold thickness, and are not generally independent of height. Differences in these correlations appear during the period of puberty. Discrimination of obese and non-obese subjects by the indices and by clinical opinion agrees in 65%-75% of instances, with no one index agreeing better than the others.