Adiposity and cardiovascular risk factors in a large contemporary population of pre-pubertal children.
OBJECTIVE
to examine the associations of several markers of adiposity and a wide range of cardiovascular risk factors and biomarkers in pre-pubertal children.


RESULTS
four measures of adiposity,body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-determined fat mass, and leptin concentration, were available in up to 7589 children aged 8.8-11.7 (9.9 mean) years from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Thirteen per cent of boys and 18.8% of girls were overweight, and 5.3% of boys and 5% of girls were obese. Body mass index was highly correlated with waist circumference (r = 0.91), DXA fat mass (r = 0.87), and leptin concentration (r = 0.75), and all had similar associations with cardiovascular risk factors. A 1 kg/m(2) greater BMI was associated with 1.4 mmHg (95% CI 1.25-1.44) higher systolic blood pressure (BP). In 5002 children, a 1 kg/m(2) greater BMI was associated with a 0.05 mmol/L (95% CI 0.036-0.055) higher non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and 0.03 mmol/L (95% CI -0.034 to -0.025) lower HDL cholesterol. There were also graded associations with apolipoproteins A1 and B, interleukin-6, and C-reactive protein. Comparing children who were obese with those who were normal weight, the odds ratio for hypertension was 10.7 (95% CI 7.2-15.9) for boys and 13.5 (95% CI 9.4-19.5) for girls.


CONCLUSIONS
in pre-pubertal UK children, overweight/obesity is common and has broadly similar associations with BP, HDL cholesterol, and non-HDL cholesterol to those observed in adults. Future research should evaluate whether effective interventions to maintain healthy weight in childhood could have important benefits for adult cardiovascular risk.
Falaschetti
Emanuela
E
Vascular Physiology Unit, Institute of Child Health, 30 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1EH, UK. e.falaschetti@ucl.ac.uk
Hingorani
Aroon D
AD
Jones
Alexander
A
Charakida
Marietta
M
Finer
Nicholas
N
Whincup
Peter
P
Lawlor
Debbie A
DA
Davey Smith
George
G
Sattar
Naveed
N
Deanfield
John E
JE
D015502:Absorptiometry, Photon; D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000473:pathology; D050154:Adiposity / Q000502:physiology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D015228:Hypertriglyceridemia / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D020738:Leptin / Q000378:metabolism*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000473:pathology; D050177:Overweight / Q000473:pathology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D055105:Waist Circumference / Q000502:physiology
D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D020738:Leptin