[A study on the factors influencing insulin resistance in children and adolescents].
OBJECTIVE
To explore the factors influencing insulin resistance in children with different nutritional status during pubertal development.


METHODS
Three hundred children with simple obese aged 7 to 17 years, and 300 normal healthy children and 300 children with malnutrition, matched for age (+/- 3 months) and height (+/- 2 cm), were selected. Fasting serum levels of leptin, insulin, glucose, total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) were measured for them.


RESULTS
Levels of fasting serum insulin in obese children, except for boys at Tanner stage I and girls at Tanner stage II, were higher than those in normal and malnutrition children (P < 0.01). Average serum level of leptin in obese boys and girls at varied Tanner stages was higher than that in normal children, and higher in normal children than that in children with malnutrition (P<0.01). Serum level of TG in obese children [(1.53 +/- 0.13) mmol/L] was higher than that in normal ones [(1.12 +/- 0.10) mmol/L] and in children with malnutrition [(1.03 +/- 0.09) mmol/L]. There was no significant difference in levels of fasting blood glucose and other blood lipids between the three groups of children. Insulin sensitivity decreased with pubertal development and its index reversely correlated with Tanner stage and serum level of leptin (r=-0.27 and -0.36, respectively, P<0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
Obesity (BMI), serum level of leptin and pubertal development were independent risk factors for insulin resistance in children aged 7 to 17 years.
Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150001, China.
Ying
Y
Li
Chang-Hao
CH
Sun
Ying
Y
Wen
Wen-Xiu
WX
Cui
D000293:Adolescent; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D004958:Estradiol / Q000097:blood; D013006:Growth Hormone / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood*; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D020738:Leptin / Q000097:blood / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000097:blood; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011627:Puberty / Q000502:physiology*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood
D007328:Insulin; D020738:Leptin; D013739:Testosterone; D004958:Estradiol; D013006:Growth Hormone